Gundam SEED Destiny: Legacy of the Blaze
by Hellshadow
Summary: 2 years after the attack on GENESIS, Armory One is attacked. Now Athrun Zala and James Daurio must take up arms again as a new war begins. Sequel to Ark's Flight. I do not own Gundam.
1. A Peace Disrupted

Armory One

October 2, CE 73

The shuttle doors opened, and several individuals stepped out and slowly walked down the ramp. The first to get down wore a red ZAFT uniform, with a sidearm on his belt. His brown hair shifted slightly as the wind passed through it. James Daurio looked up, grinning. "Come on, guys. Quit being so slow."

The second passenger craned his neck and stepped off. A blood red light flashed across the visor quickly as he came down. His combat armor shone as the light reflected off its gold plated surface.

"Did you have a good flight, Five?" James asked, smirking.

"It was decent," the former Earth Forces operative said. After the war, he'd voluntarily joined James as he returned to ZAFT.

"Armory One," James sighed. "Looks pretty nice. For a base." The two looked around as the last passengers came out. A young man stepped out, with blue hair. He wore a pair of large shades over his eyes, masking most of his face. "What do you think, Alex?"

Alex Dino shrugged. "Haven't been here in a while. Lot of memories."

"Can you move already?"

James smirked as Cagalli Yula Attha hurried her bodyguard along. It never failed to amuse him how the man took his job seriously, only to have the representative belittle him. Occasionally. He walked over to a parked jeep, flashing his ID to the two troops standing next to him.

"James Daurio, Captain of the _Nazca _class _Zacynthus._ We're here to escort Miss Attha to see Mister Durandal, as well as check on our deliveries," he explained. The troopers shared a glance at each other. "Is there a problem?"

"No, sir," one said, gulping. "We were told you'd be arriving a bit later."

James grinned. "Miss Attha felt that we should be here as soon as possible. Hope you don't mind."

"No, not at all, sir," flinching as he noticed Five staring at him. Or at least, his helmet was facing him directly.

"Good. I'll drive them over myself. Thank you," James finished. Five walked over to the passenger side and climbed him, taking the swords strapped to his back off and placing them by his feet. Cagalli and Alex got in the back. The jeep's engine rumbled and James slowly drove away.

"Well, that wasn't a bad start, though you didn't help much," James said, looking at Five. The operative slowly turned his head towards James. "You didn't ask me to," he replied. Alex smiled at that. When he'd first met Five after the war, the man seemed distant and cold. While he hadn't changed much, his loyalty was absolute.

"Is that the ship?" Cagalli asked, and the group looked to the left. A large, gray ship sat in the center of the harbor.

"Yes. The LHM-BB01. Designated _Minerva,"_ James said. The back half looks like a miniature version of _Archangel_."

Not too far away, a young pilot watched as the chairman's shuttle docked. Gilbert Durandal stepped out and smiled as Rey Za Burrel saluted. He walked down and shook the blonde pilot's hand. "Wonderful to see you again, Rey."

"You as well, Chairman."

An aide walked up to Durandal. "I'm sorry to interrupt, sir. They've arrived."

"Have they? Ahead of schedule?" He smiled warmly. "Simply wonderful."

* * *

James parked the car and stepped out. He looked at Cagalli and shook his head.

"Couldn't you have worn a dress?" Alex asked, an annoyed expression on his face. Cagalli just scoffed.

"What's wrong with the suit?"

Athrun sighed and looked around, noticing three teenagers at a corner far down. Five stepped up next to him. "Something up?"

"No," Athrun muttered. "Probably not."

They got into an elevator and waited patiently as it moved down to Armory One's inhabited area. When they got to Durandal's office, the man stood up and smiled. "Thank you for coming, Chief Representative."

"Truth be told, your request for a meeting came before I could ask myself," Cagalli replied, smiling. "It's nice to meet you."

"I apologize for not being immediately courteous with your fellow bodyguards, but I must ask what it is that you want," he said.

"I'd like you to stop using Orb's technology and human resources for military applications," Cagalli said bluntly.

* * *

Stellar Lousier looked at the dresses through the glass, smiling. She spun once and backed away, now dancing slowly. She backed into someone, and began to fall over, but he wrapped his arms around her, preventing it. She looked behind her, noticing his black hair and crimson eyes. "You okay?" He asked. She broke away and walked off, not bothering to answer. "Lucky pervert," someone behind him said. "Come on, Shinn."

"I didn't plan that," he argued.

* * *

Five and James walked behind Cagalli and Athrun, looking at the new model mobile suits all around them.

"Despite the development of our new mobile suits, we're not looking to start a new war," Durandal explained. Alex looked around, noticing one of the new models in a hangar. The green machine bore a resemblance to the GINN, but was missing the top fin on the head, had smaller thrusters, and was green. It also had a shield on its left shoulder, and several grenades on its hip joints. He turned his attention back to Cagalli, listening.

"We want peace and freedom from aggression, but we need military power to achieve that," Durandal said.

"Having too much power is practically begging for a conflict," Cagalli replied hotly.

"Cagalli," Five said, earning a glare from her. "He's doing what Orb did two years ago."

"Because human conflict will never truly end, it will always be necessary to have power," Durandal explained.

* * *

Two ZAFT officers opened the door for three young teenagers, one of which was Stellar Lousier. They put a bag on the ground and opened it, revealing several weapons inside. Stellar reached in and pulled out a knife, looking at it. Sting Oakley grinned as he took out two submachine guns. The light blue haired Auel Neider took two machine guns as well. They looked at each other and nodded.

A minute later, they ran out, guns blazing. Most of the ZAFT personnel in the hangar were gunned down before they even knew what was happening. Sting ran towards the first mobile suit prototype and, seemingly without effort, got on top with three leaps. Auel and Stellar followed suit. They activated the machines, and slowly, the prototypes rose, the color schemes shifting from gray to green, blue and black. A badly wounded technician pulled himself up, and with his last breath, hit the alarm.

* * *

Gilbert, James, Athrun, Cagalli, and Five, all heard the alarm just as the hangar doors exploded. The shockwave shook the ground so badly they fell over. Five stood up and offered a hand to the chairman. "Are you all right, sir?"

"Yes, perfectly all right, thank you for-"

He stooped and watched as the ZGMF-X31S Abyss fired its multi-phase beam cannon at the hangar in front of it, the building falling to the ground in mere seconds.

"G-gundams?" Athrun asked, surprised. Five and James looked around, noticing that the packages they'd been sent to retrieve were indeed in the hangars. "Five," he said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"I see it," Five said. "Go. I'll handle them on the ground."

Stellar transformed the ZGMF-X88S Gaia into its quadruped mode, which eerily reminded James of a BuCUE. He watched in morbid fascination as the machine destroyed a hangar with just one shot. He looked at Alex. "Get her out of here," he told him. Alex nodded and pulled Cagalli away. Five looked up and stared as GINNs, DINNs, and even GAZuOOTs slowly moved forward, trying to contain the stolen machines.

"You men go with the chief representative!" Durandal barked at his guards. "You, as well, Agent Five."

"Sorry, chairman. I have another problem to deal with," he said, pointing behind the chairman. Several Alliance troops were coming towards, automatic rifles in their hands.

"Very well, then. Good luck," the chairman said, following the men. Lunamaria Hawke and Rey za Burrel ran towards the hangar where their units were, but a shot from Gaia caused the building to collapse, sealing their units inside. Athrun and Cagalli followed James and Athrun climbed onto a ZAKU Warrior, pulling Cagalli up. James headed towards the damaged hangar, kicking debris out of his way as tried to get into the burning wreck that had been the hangar.

Five rushed forward and with a yell, jumped between the Alliance soldiers. He spun gracefully, smashing his elbow into one's face as he grabbed a rifle and adjusted its aim, the troop holding it pulling the trigger. Bullets ripped into his comrade in arms, and Five slammed his open hand into the man's elbow, breaking it. He then grabbed him by the shoulders and smashed his knee into the man's stomach before finishing with an elbow to the back. Five spun without thinking, performing a back flip kick so hard the man's neck broke.

* * *

Athrun grabbed Cagalli and jumped into the ZAKU Warrior. "Do you remember how to do this?" Cagalli asked.

"Unfortunately, it's like riding a bike," Athrun said. The ZAKU Warrior stood up, air flooding out of its chest vents.

On the _Minerva_, a small fighter jet, designated the Core Splendor, lifted off, followed by three support packs.

The ZAKU body slammed the Gaia, surprising Stellar. She looked to the right, noticing that her beam rifle had been dropped. She activated the beam saber, and Gaia lunged. Athrun pulled back, the ZAKU's beam axe in its hand. It blocked the Gaia's attack, Athrun struggling with the controls. He didn't notice the Chaos behind him, Sting grinning as he pulled out a beam saber as well. The ZAKU's arm fell to the ground, Chaos's saber smoking. The machine took a step towards the ZAKU, ready for the final kill.

"Time to die," Sting said, smiling. He turned his attention to the destroyed hangar as a warning came on. The walls exploded as two beams shot out, grazing Chaos's chest. "What the-"

Athrun stared in amazement as another prototype stepped out, dragging a white Blaze ZAKU Phantom and a red ZAKU Warrior by their heads. The machine resembled a Strike Dagger, with an identical chest and torso, though its visor was dead center in the head, with one antenna located on the left of the head. It was pure white, save the chest, which was red. A single beam saber was attached to its hip joint, and two beam turrets were mounted on its shoulder panels.

"_Didn't think it was gonna be that easy, did you?"_

"James?" Athrun asked.

"_Yup."_

"What is that unit?"

"_A little something Djarum and the others helped build. Say hello to the KGM-79 GM Cannon. GM standing for Gundam Mass produced."_

Athrun shook his head in amazement. He had no idea Alex's friends had these kinds of resources. Cagalli couldn't believe it.

"New model or not, it won't save you," Sting said. The Chaos stepped forward. Sting's attitude changed as Chaos was rocked by explosions. Athrun watched as a tiny fighter flew past, followed by a boxy canister, and what appeared to be a pair of mobile suit legs. The fighter dropped its rockets and its wings folded in as its nose dipped down, the fighter slipping into the legs. The rectangular canister attached to it, and two arms swung out as a head popped out, a v-shaped fin on top. Finally, a small glider attached to its back, creating a thruster pack. The machine activated its phase shift as it came down, turning the chest and head into a bright red. The Sword Impulse stood up, its eyes flashing.

"_Do you people want another war?!"_

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Finished. Sorry for the wait. First chapter is done. Lemme know what you think. Hellshadow


	2. The Ones Who Wish For War

I DO NOT OWN GUNDAM

* * *

James watched as the new G-unit ran right at the Gaia, swinging its massive sword. The Gaia leaped backwards, the blade hitting the ground, gravel flying everywhere. "CABAL, what is that?" James asked.

A computer console on his left turned on, data streaming so quickly, James wasn't even sure what it was. CABAL's deep voice filled his ears suddenly. "ZGMF-X56S/β Sword Impulse Gundam. Preliminary scans indicate it is ZAFT's equivalent of the GAT X-105 Strike, which Kira Yamato piloted in the early stages of the previous war," it informed him.

"Oh. Really?" James asked. He looked at the machine again, watching as the new model stood calmly, ignoring the CIWS rounds that were hitting it. In a split second, the Impulse raised its beam rifle and snapped off several shots, forcing the stolen ZGMF-X88S Gaia to break off. The Impulse followed, firing again when the machine landed on the ground. Stellar barely had time to respond, backing away once again as Impulse tried to blast the ground out from under her.

Not far away, Sting Oakley and Auel Neider were trying to make sense of the new threat. "Nobody said anything about a fourth unit!" Auel said.

"They didn't mention these things, either!" Sting replied, dodging the GM Cannon's shots as it tried to bring it down.

* * *

Inside the _Minerva, _Arthur Trine shook his head and contacted the Impulse as he watched the battle. "Shinn, those are units out there. Your objective is to capture them, not destroy them."

"_It's not exactly gonna be easy!" _The pilot said sharply. _"How could these thigns have gotten stolen this easily?"_

"You shouldn't be asking those questions in the middle of a battle," Captain Talia Gladys responded.

"_She's right, Asuka. Right now, our only objectives are the retrival of the stolen units, and the safety of the _Minerva."

The captain narrowed her eyes. "Who's on this frequency? Identify."

"_This is James Daurio, of the _Zacynthus. _Sorry we have to meet this way."_

Talia smiled, glad that her pilot wasn't on his own out there. "As am I. I'm surprised you're out there yourself, captain."

"_Trust me, I didn't plan it that way. We were assigned to this job to help escort your ship on her maiden voyage. Good thing we've got our own units,"_ James broadcast, his voice strained. _"I've gotta cut this short. Little busy." _The line disconnected abruptly. Arthur looked at Talia. "Should we confirm this, captain?"

"We'll get our confirmation soon enough," Talia replied. "Right now, we need all the help we can get."

* * *

In space, the Alliance battleship _Girty Lue _waited, hidden thanks to mirage colloid. The ship was the sister ship of the _Ark_, though Commander Neo Roanoke had no idea what had happened to that vessel after the war. He decided not to dwell on it. "Drop mirage colloid."

_Girty Lue _opened fire as its clocking device deactivated. The beams tore right through one of the _Nazca _class vessels. Neo noticed that one of the ships was a bit different. The _Nazca _furthest in front was black, making it almost impossible to see. The only way to see it other than by scanners was by its catapults, which were a bright gold.

"Well, well," Neo said. "I'd heard of a ship like that, but I never thought it existed. Its captain was a good friend of Alexander Kolodziej's. I wonder how he's feeling right now."

The _Zacynthus _fired its cannons, the beams narrowly missing the _Girty Lue._ Neo smiled again. "It appears they don't want to destroy us so that the debris doesn't damage their sister ships."

The _Girty Lue _sent a pair of Dagger L's towards Armory One's spaceport as it opened fire onto another _Nazca _class. The Dagger L's headed for the ZAFT vessels, dodging the incoming fire with ease. The two units came up behind the ships, targeting the engines. They fired together, reducing the ship's thrusters to molten slag. The ship started to drift to the left, slamming into the other forcefully. Armor ripped off violently as the vessels slowly came apart due to explosions.

* * *

The Abyss fired its triple beam cannons, catching one DINN in its chest, the other on fire and spiraling out of control due to a missing arm and wing. "Sting, we got the signal. Let's get out of here," Auel said.

In the ZAKU, Athrun's eyes widened as he remembered the disaster of Heliopolis. The GM Cannon turned to look at him quickly before returning to the task at hand. The Impulse swung again, now in a sword lock with the Gaia. The Chaos and Abyss landed behind him, and Abyss swung its beam lance. However, the pilot of Impulse had other ideas. Shinn pushed the sticks down, and Impulse ducked before slamming into Abyss's chest, forcing the unit back. The GM fired at Gaia, preventing it from attacking the ZAFT machine. It pulled out a beam saber while firing and swung to the right, blocking a blow from Chaos.

Athrun finally pushed ahead, knocking the Abyss away as it prepared to impale Impulse from behind. Without stopping, Athrun used the ZAKU's beam axe and hurled it at Gaia. The G-unit raised its shield, and the weapon harmlessly bounced off. The Abyss fired its chest cannon, taking the ZAKU's arm. Athrun groaned as the blast shook the unit, Cagalli crying out as her head hit the bulkhead. Athrun looked at her, noticing that she was bleeding. He grabbed the sticks and pulled back quickly.

"_Athrun, what's wrong?" _James asked.

"Cagalli's injured. I have to pull back," he said.

"_You took her with you?! What the hell-"_

"We had not time!" Athrun said hotly. "Just cover me as I get out!"

"_Roger that."_

The ZAKU turned around and started running. The Chaos landed behind it and took aim, only to have the GM blast it back with its cannons.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ray za Burrel waited as the workers cleared away the rubble covering the cockpit of his ZAKU Phantom. As soon as it was cleared, he rushed forward, climbing into it.

"Hey, wait a minute! We're not done yet!" One crew worker said. Rey ignored him, closing the cockpit. The men ran back as the grey machine slowly stood up, the remaining rubble falling to the ground. It reached down and started clearing away the rocks covering the ZAKU warrior.

Not far away, Durandal was arguing with his guards. "Sir, it's best for you to be in a shelter."

"Not until I've learned more about the situation," Durandal said stubbornly.

* * *

Inside Impulse, Shinn activated the beam boomerang. The Impulse threw it up towards Gaia, the black mobile suit reeling as it blocked the forceful blow with its shield.

Auel activated his comm as he kept his eyes on the two ZAKUs that had finally gotten out of the rubble. "Stellar, we need to retreat."

Stellar kept attacking the Impulse, ignoring Auel's words. _"Well, okay, if that's how you feel about it, then go ahead and die."_

The Gaia suddenly stopped in the middle of an attack, and Shinn used the break to pull Impulse back. The Gaia, Abyss, and Chaos flew off before any more reinforcements could come. "Where the hell are you guys going?!" Shinn snarled, the Impulse following. Rey and Lunamaria Hawke followed in their suits.

"The Gunner ZAKU's thrusters are about to fail," CABAL said.

"What?" James asked. He looked up as heard an explosion. Sure enough, the ZAKU's engines had gone out and it was now falling. The GM moved forward and James pushed down on the pedals, the GM leaping into the air, catching the ZAKU. James groaned as the machine landed hard on the ground, crushing the concrete beneath it.

* * *

Athrun watched as medical teams scrambled to help the wounded. James set the GM down next to his ZAKU and got out, watching as Athrun helped Cagalli out. "What were you thinking? You should have stayed back instead of coming with me," Athrun said.

"Hey, you were the one who dragged me with you!" Cagalli answered.

"She's got you there," James said, grinning. "You alright, Cagalli?"

* * *

Neo looked at his crew. "Any word on our pilots?"

"No, sir."

"Prepare my Exus," he said, walking out.

In the PLANT, Shinn watched as the stolen G-units continued to evade them. "Can't believe these guys can fight so well in units they've just stolen," he said.

James's GM headed for the Minerva. _"Don't be so amazed, Asuka. The guys from the _Ark, _two years ago? They didn't have any piloting experience, either, and they got quite good real fast. And there was one guy Alexander Kolodziej met, too. He was even more amazing. Alex said it himself that he looked like a rookie, compared to that guy."_

Neo's Exus finally entered battle, and Five, now aboard _Minerva_, was amazed at what he saw. _So the bastards mass produced Zero's mobile armor. How unoriginal._ He watched as the Exus detached its wireless gunbarrels, destroying several CGUEs and GuAIZ Rs.

Back in the colony, Rey felt a slight tingling in his head. Lunamaria's ZAKU landed on the _Minerva_'s deck as the Chairman's shuttle docked.

Shinn thumbed the triggers, and the Impulse threw two beam boomerangs at the Gaia. "I don't think so!" Auel said, firing his phase beam cannon, blasting the weapons out of the sky.

"_Minerva_! Send out the Force Silhouette!" Shinn yelled.

James shook his head. _Yeah, scream at your superiors, that'll help. _He knew where the kid was coming from, but protocol had its place, too. He thumbed the triggers, the GM Cannon firing again. The Chaos launched its gunbarrels, the remote weapons firing at the Impulse. The gundam pulled its weapons up, but the beams struck the swords so hard, the blades shattered and exploded, blinding Shinn temporarily.

James looked at his scanners, noticing a bogey that was rapidly approaching. "Hey, Impulse pilot, is that-"

"_Yes. It is."_

The Impulse leaped into the air, the Sword pack detaching from its back. The suit turned gray for several seconds before the Force Silhouette docked with it. The Impulse's color returned, though it was now blue and white instead of red.

"Definitely a Strike rip-off," James muttered. He'd checked the Strike and Strike Rouge's stats after the war to help with the design of the GM units. The Force Impulse rocketed towards the retreating units, whose pilots were surprised.

"He can change his armaments in the middle of a battle?!" Auel screeched. The Impulse struck Abyss on its side, and Auel fired the cannons again. The beams went past Shinn, striking the colony wall so hard a hole was torn open. Shinn pushed the Impulse forward, Rey's ZAKU trailing behind him.

"_Shinn, you only have 300 seconds of power left!" _Meyrin Hawke's voice came through loud and clear.

* * *

"Well, I guess we don't have a choice. Launch the _Minerva_!" Talia said.

Lunamaria was looking over her ZAKU when Athrun's and James's mobile suits landed. She grabbed a submachine gun and walked over, followed by several guards. James got down and checked his gun. After the events of the last war, he was prepared for any eventuality. He grabbed Cagalli as Athrun brought her down. Lunamaria walked up behind them, gun raised. "Who are you? How did you get those units?"

"Oh, come on," James said, hands raised is disbelief. "You think an enemy is dumb enough to come onto a warship alone, with a wounded representative trailing behind him?"

"My name is Alex Dino," Athrun said, standing in front of Cagalli. "This is Chief Representative Attha. The loudmouth next to me is James Daurio."

"Hey!" James said, looking at him. "Captain James Daurio."

"Where's your ship?" Lunamaria asked, looking at him suspiciously.

"_Zacynthus._ It's outside the colony, with the other vessels. No radio contact, though. My guess is the enemy blocked them."

"We were meeting with the chairman, and I'd like to speak to him," Athrun said. Lunamaria led them out of the hangar, keeping a close eye on them. James leaned in close to Athrun. "Alex Dino?" He snickered.

"Shut up, Daurio," Athrun said. "You didn't have any better ideas."

They made their way to the bridge as the _Minerva _launched.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Done. Ahead of schedule again. Hopefully, I'll be able to pull off weekly updates. I also hope that this chapter was satisfactory.


	3. Ominous Fire

* * *

The instant Shinn had made it out of the colony, he came under fire. He cursed and tugged hard at the controls, sending the Impulse into a rapid spin. Inside the Exus mobile armor, Neo Roanoke smirked. His gunbarrels flew circles around the Impulse, preventing the ZAFT pilot from doing anything other than dodging. Neo smiled and pushed forward, but a few moments later, he felt a tingling sensation in his head.

The gunbarrels quickly changed course and fired, but the beams harmlessly hit the shields of the new arrival. Rey za Burrel fired a shot from his beam rifle and contacted Shinn. "Don't zone out or you'll be a target, Shinn!"

Neo looked at the ZAKU as he came around for another pass. _Who are you?_ His gunbarrels fired again, but the grey machine performed a flip and destroyed one of the gunbarrels with a single shot.

On the _Minerva_, Captain Talia Gladys was making sure all their systems were functional. "Give me a status update on Rey and Shinn. And designate the enemy vessel as Bogey One."

"Captain, they're fighting a mobile armor and can't be contacted at this time," Meyrin Hawke informed her. "Also, we have a _Nazca-_class vessel hailing us."

Talia looked at her in surprise. "Its designation?"

"_Zacynthus, _ma'am."

"Lower the bridge into combat position and connect me to _Zacynthus_,_"_ Talia requested.

"Yes, ma'am!"

Talia looked at the screen as _Zacynthus _picked up their comm link. She blinked in surprise. A young man was on the screen, with a scar over his left eye. He had long, messy black hair, and wore a red ZAFT uniform. _"howdy," _the teenager said. _"Hell of a morning, huh?"_

"I'm sorry, but you are?" Talia asked.

"_Djarum Gale, Jr. The backup captain for the _Zacynthus_," _he replied. _"Daurio is the head honcho, but he's out there right now. I'm just the grease monkey."_

"Well, either way, we appreciate the assistance," Durandal said, smiling. "I had no idea we had such talent within ZAFT."

"_Technically, James is government issue," _Djarum said with a grin. _"I was in the last war, as a mechanic. The units we've got were designed by myself and several other members of Kolodziej Industries. Matter of fact, we've gotta launch one now, so I'll chat with you folks later," _he finished, putting a pipe in his mouth before disconnecting.

"Well," Durandal said, "they're a rather interesting bunch."

"To think someone that young is in command of a vessel," Talia said silently.

"It's not that far fetched, captain," he said. "After all, we have extremely young pilots within ZAFT. It's only natural that some of those recruits possess knowledge that far exceeds their physical age. Do you plan to recover our stolen units now?"

Talia looked at him and grimaced. "That's rather presumptuous at this point, chairman. I'll attack Bogey One to try to lure it close."

"Captain, the _Zacynthus _has launched another mobile suit," Meyrin informed them. "Designated as a…GM Kai? Captain?" She looked at her, and Talia had a confused look on her face.

"If I may, captain?" Durandal asked. "After the war, some of Alexander Kolodziej's friends brought his will forward to us. In it was his wish for Kolodziej Industries to once again be brought back. I granted his wish shortly before my term began. I knew the Kolodziejs quite well, at least by reputation. I believe I met Alex's father once, but it was quite brief."

Talia looked ahead. They could reminisce later. "Target Bogey One and fire."

The _Minerva _fired its cannons and missiles. The beams grazed the enemy vessel, but the missiles were destroyed by the ship's vulcan guns. The _Zacynthus _fired its beam cannons once, but the beams passed harmlessly underneath the ship.

"What kind of attack was that?" Talia asked.

"I'm sure they are trying to scare the enemy into surrendering," Durandal said. "After all, they have captured our mobile suits. And I hear that Mister Gale is quite the mobile suit enthusiast. No doubt he'd love to take a look at our new machines."

* * *

The Impulse drew its beam saber and tried to cleave the passing mobile armor in two. Neo smiled and looked back at the machine. "You'll have to do better than that, kid," he remarked. Rey's ZAKU fired its rifle several time, hitting one of the gunbarrels repeatedly. The mobile weapon spun several times before exploding. Neo gritted his teeth. "Guess it's time for me to pull out."

Before he could, though, a beam hurled past him. His mobile armor banked sharply, and Neo looked as another mobile suit entered the fight. Rey looked at the machine as he tried to follow Neo. It was primarily white, with a red chest. A single antenna extended from the left side of the head, and a green visor was in the center of it. It raised its arm and fired its beam pistol. Neo threw the mobile armor into a loop, barely avoiding the beam. He quickly pulled out, pushing the small fighter as far as he could. The Impulse tried to follow, but the red machine maneuvered itself in front of it. _"Don't do anything hasty, kid. Your ship's safety comes first."_

Shinn glared at the mobile suit in front of him. "We can't just back down now! We have to-"

"_You wanna get yourself killed that badly, fine. Go ahead. But do it smart. So either back down or take me out first." _The mobile suit's arm moved up and grabbed its beam saber.

"Fine," Shinn said, pulling the Impulse away.

As the _Minerva _fired again, Neo docked inside the ship, _Girty Lue_, contacting the bridge. "Lee, plot an escape route," he said into his comm. "Detach our propellant tanks and detonate them. That should slow them down."

* * *

Shinn and Rey exited their mobile suits, and two young men slapped Shinn on the back when got down. "You okay, Shinn?"

Shinn grinned. "I'm fine, you guys."

Rey and Shinn looked over at the red machine, a scowl appearing on Shinn's face. "Who the hell is that?"

"Ah. Support from the _Zacynthus,_" Vino told Shinn. Shinn looked at him in surprise. "You don't know? _Zacynthus _was in the last war. The captain was a good friend of the Blue Blaze."

Shinn knew the Blue Blaze. The pilot who suddenly turned away from ZAFT. Shinn's feelings about the man were mixed. He respected his skill and determination, but disliked the fact that Alexander Kolodziej fought against ZAFT. He looked over at the pilot, surprised that the man wore combat armor, complete with a helmet. He walked over to him, and looked him up and down. It was silver, and the helmet had six tiny orbs running down the helmet, two by two. They glowed a bright orange. "Can I help you?" The being asked, startling Shinn.

"Who the hell are you?" Shinn asked bluntly.

"Ah, yes, I thought you'd respond that way. You have a real problem with authority, pilot Asuka. But if you must know, call me Thirteen."

Shinn glanced at the two swords ne had strapped to his back, the blades running parallel to each other. He also had two pistols holstered by the waist, and an assault rifle slung over his arm. "Carrying a lot of guns," Shinn said, already a little suspicious.

"You think I'm a spy," Thirteen said, surprising Shinn. "I've seen five year olds hide their emotions better than you."

Shinn was about to reply, but the ship shook violently all of a sudden.

* * *

The _Minerva _had been following Bogey One, but realized too late that the propellant tanks had been dropped on purpose to provide a distraction. Talia looked at Durandal. "I'm afraid we won't have a chance to drop you off now, Chairman."

"It's fine, captain," Durandal said. "Our priority should be to capture or destroy those units, captain.

The door behind them opened, and James Daurio walked in, fixing his collar. "Sorry I'm late. What hit us?"

"The enemy attempted to slow us down by detonating their tanks behind them," Talia told him.

"An idea that proved quite successful," Durandal added. "But our captain's quick thinking minimized the damage."

"Good to know," James said, leaning against a seat.

The bridge began to move back up into normal operation, and Rey came onto the bridge. "Perhaps you could escort the chairman to his room, Rey," Talia suggested.

"Yes, captain," Rey said, and looked at James. "Commander, I'd like to thank you fro your assistance out there."

"Not a problem," James answered, smiling. "Like I said, we were sent to escort you anyway. You boys did a hell of a job out there."

"I'd also like to apologize for Shinn's behavior," Rey continued. "I know he has some issues with command."

"Don't apologize for that. Some of the best pilots I've know have had issues with authority," James said, thinking of Kira Yamato. "They grow out of it eventually, somewhat. Good pilots need to have a mind of their own, too."

"Personal motto?" Durandal asked.

"No. Just fact. When soldiers blindly obey orders, they eventually commit atrocities and shrug the consequences of their actions off as being 'part of the job'," James explained. "I'm not saying soldiers should disobey orders all the time, but there are moments where one should make the decisions himself."

The comm beeped, and Talia answered the call. "Yes, Lunamaria?"

Lunamaria Hawke's face appeared onscreen. _"I'm sorry to interrupt, captain, but wwe had two civilians board with a ZAKU. They claim to be Cagalli Yula Attha and Alex Dino, her bodyguard."_

"I can confirm that," James said. He looked at the captain. "I was escorting the representative here when the attack began. I took our prototype out while Mister Dino got the representative to safety. He boarded a ZAKU since there was no other alternative."

"_They've requested medical attention and an audience with the chairman," _Lunamaria continued. _"They're in the infirmary now."_

"Mister Dino must be quite a pilot if he survived an encounter with the new models in nothing but a ZAKU," Durandal remarked.

"Alex Dino is exceptionally skilled, sir," James said. "As I said, he fought with us towards the end of the war."

* * *

On the _Girty Lue_, Neo's subordinate, Lee, wondered if the _Minerva _would follow them.

"I don't really know," Neo said. "We'll proceed under the assumption that they will."

"And the other ship?"

"They've stuck together so far. I don't think that will change," Neo answered. "What's the status on our pilots?"

"Just Auel so far," an aide informed them. "He used Stellar's block word."

"Tch, that kid," Neo said, grimacing.

"I'm unsure of the effectiveness of such people on the battlefield," Lee said.

"Unlike the last bunch, these three can actually follow orders," Neo said.

* * *

"I must apologize for the situation you're in," Durandal told Cagalli.

"Have you found out anything about the attackers?" Cagalli asked.

"I'm afraid we have no information at this time," Durandal said sadly. "But we must stay on top of the problem if we are to prevent the situation from getting worse. Now, on to more pleasant matters. Would you like to take a tour of the ship?"

Talia turned around, frowning. "Are you sure that's wise, sir?"

"A gesture of good faith between friends, captain," Durandal explained.

In the hangar, Lunamaria called Shinn over. "What is it?" Shinn asked in a bored tone of voice.

"You know that Alex Dino guy?" She asked.

Shin scoffed. "Yeah. What about him?"

"I think he's Athrun Zala."

Shinn had a bewildered look on his face. He turned around, noticing the chairman.

Rey and Durandal escorted James, Alex, and Cagalli to the mobile suit hangar. Cagalli noticed several ZAKUs, a GuAIZ R and the Impulse. She looked at the chairman. "Are you enjoying the situation? Power always being necessary? Why were these new units even necessary when both sides offered to move towards peace?"

"Just like an Attha to sugarcoat things!"

They turned around, noticing Shinn coming towards them. "That Attha family always was good at sugarcoating matters."

Five and Thirteen walked over and stood in front of Cagalli, Five wondering if the brash pilot would be stupid enough to try something.

* * *

"Bogey One detected!" Meyrin announced.

"All hands, battle stations!" Talia ordered, the bridge lowering into combat position.

In the hangar, Rey looked at Cagalli and her two armored guards. "I apologize for Shinn's outbursts. He's rather hotheaded. I promise I'll deal with him later." He saluted and ran towards his mobile suit.

The Gunner ZAKU Warrior locked itself onto the catapult. "Lunamaria Hawke, ZAKU, launching!"

The red mobile suit rocketed out of the _Minerva_, followed by Five and Thirteen in their GM Cannon and GM Kai. Shinn's Core Splendor launched last, the Chest Flyer, Leg Flyer, and Force Silhouette following closely.

Djarum watched from the _Zacynthus._ _"Djarum?"_ Djarum jumped at the voice. "What's up, doc?"

"_Five and Thirteen are in the GM units. We got anything else?"_

"Not at the moment," Djarum said, flipping through a large book. "The other GM models aren't ready yet."

"_Guess those two will have to do."_

* * *

"I wonder what Bogey One's real designation is," Durandal wondered aloud. "The name determines the existence of something, and if that name is fake-" he stopped, looking at Athrun. "It doesn't exist. Isn't that right, Athrun Zala?"

Athrun and James looked at him in surprise, James's hand on his holster. _What now?_

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Done. On time again. Hope you enjoyed. I'll try to keep this up as long as I can. Hellshadow


	4. Battlefield of Stardust

The _Minerve _and _Zacynthus _launched their mobile suits as quickly as possible. As the five mobile suits approached the debris field, Lunamaria winced. "I've never scored well on asteroid simulations," she said, her voice shaky.

"Stay alert," Shinn snapped, watching his scanners. The Impulse had come equipped with the Blast Impulse setting. Talia had believed that more firepower would be useful in this one instance. James agreed with her.

"Way to follow a train of thought," Thirteen said sarcastically. He looked at the Gunner ZAKU's stats. "Just stay calm, Miss Hawke. The enemy is in the same boat as we are."

"Actually, they're probably better off," Shinn said. "We don't know if they have reinforcements." The Impulse moved up behind the GM Cannon.

"Again, way to follow a train a thought," Thirteen said, shaking his head.

In the GM Kai, Five just watched the scanners. He wasn't about to lose the war before it began.

* * *

James kept his hand on the gun, eyeing the ZAFT crew. If things turned ugly, he wasn't sure he could do anything.

"I can assure you that I'm not accusing Athrun of anything," Durandal said softly. He smiled at Cagalli, who was now standing in front of Athrun protectively.

"It sure didn't sound that way," Cagalli said, glaring at him.

"Chairman Canaver explained to me the actions you took during the last war, and I would simply like to talk to Athrun as who he truly is," Durandal said. "Not Athrun Zala, son of Patrick Zala, nor Athrun Zala of ZAFT. Simply Athrun Zala."

"Something doesn't seem right here," Talia said suddenly. She'd been listening to the conversation, but had resumed looking at the scanners and data feeds.

"_I concur," _Djarum said over the comm. _"I've got a bad feeling in my gut."_

"Sure it's not your lunch?" Athrun asked, a small smile on his face. He looked at the soldiers again, and James shook his head.

"_Ha ha," _Djarum replied. _"You're a riot, Zala."_

"Oh, no," Talia said.

"It's a decoy," Athrun said.

* * *

Just as they heard over the comm, the Gaia, Chaos, and Abyss emerged from behind a piece of debris.

"How'd we miss them?" Shinn asked, firing.

"_We're in a debris field, Asuka. The rubble is screwing with the sensors. And you call yourself a redcoat?"_

Shinn fumed at the comment, but kept his attention on the Chaos, which had just destroyed a GuAIZ R with its gunbarrels. A single Dagger L unit appeared behind the GM Kai, and Thirteen cursed. The enemy machine fired, grazing the unit as it turned. Thirteen thumbed the left stick's trigger twice, The GM pulling its beam saber. The Dagger L pulled away, but Thirteen pushed the stick forward and released, the GM hurling the saber forward. The beam weapon embedded itself in the chest, sticking out the other side. The GM grabbed the handle and pulled it out, pushing the Dagger away before it exploded.

_"How's that for an ace performance?" _Five asked.

* * *

The _Minerva_'s crew scrambled to find the _Girty Lue. _The ship had disappeared after the stolen units arrived on the scene. Talia and Djarum were both getting nervous. "Ma'am! Object directly behind us!"

"Oh, crap!" Djarum yelped, his feet jerking.

"Hug the asteroid wall!" Talia ordered. The _Minerva _came dangerously close to the wreckage. The _Girty Lue _fired, sending beams and missiles towards both ships. The _Zacynthus _fired its own barrage from the side, the weapon fire creating a temporary shield.

The Abyss fired at a piece of wreckage, destroying an antenna and the GuAIZ R hiding behind it.

"_Shinn, Lunamaria, return to the ship immediately!" _Talia's voice came through the comm clearly. _"We're under attack!"_

Stellar transformed the Gaia into its quadruped form and ran along the colony wall. She fired the beam assault cannons, shattering glass and metal next to Lunamaria as she landed.

"Take this!" Lunamaria cried, firing the beam cannon. The Gaia evaded in time, but the force of the blast rocked the panel, sending the Gaia up. Thirteen appeared out of nowhere with the GM Kai, ramming the Gaia's head from the side. The unit was hurled away, Stellar panicking. The Gaia landed on large slab, and the head looked up at the GM.

"Oh, crap," Thirteen muttered. The Gaia fired its cannons again, and the GM Kai brought its shield up. The beams struck, knocking the unit away. "Not the brightest thing I've done!" Thirteen groaned aloud, pushing down on the pedals while tugging the sticks, trying to pull himself out.

Shinn, meanwhile, entered the interior of the colony, followed closely by the Chaos and Abyss.

"_You're not getting away today!"_

Shinn ignored the words, focusing on the path. The wall ahead suddenly crumbled and came down, Lunamaria's ZAKU falling through it. "Damn!" Shinn yelled, throwing Impulse into a spin. The machine barely avoided Luna's unit. The Impulse turned around and fired a shot at the Gaia, which had just come through the opening. The Blast Impulse fired it Kerberos beam cannons, but the Gaia jumped away. The Abyss and Chaos took aim, but the ground in front of the ZAKU exploded, the GM Cannon plowing through it, firing its trademark weapons. Sting and Auel dodged without thinking, smashing their units into the walls.

"Well," Thirteen said. "Damned if you do, and damned if you don't. I was hoping for don't, but that works, too."

* * *

The _Girty Lue _continued firing at the ships. The _Minerva _and _Zacynthus _couldn't do anything, however, because of the high density of rocks.

"Fire the missiles at the slab," Neo ordered. "I'll launch in the Exus and finish them off myself."

Onboard the _Minerva_, Athrun watched as the missiles approached. "Captain! You have to move us away from the asteroid! Those missiles aren't aimed at us!"

"Arthur! Hard to port!" Talia yelled. She wasn't about to question Athrun Zala's judgment on this subject. The _Zacynthus _cut its engines and turned to the side, its captain reaching the same conclusion as Athrun.

The rockets went past the _Minerva_, striking the wall of the asteroid. Debris rained down, rock smashing into the _Minerva, _scratching paint and denting the hull. The _Zacynthus _fired its cannons directly ahead, trying to destroy the rubble that was now coming directly towards it.

"Fire rockets!" Djarum yelled, the mechanic visibly freaked out of his mind. "Come on!"

The _Zacynthus _fired everything it had, reducing a large fragment to mere pebbles. Several other rocks grazed its surface and smashed into the catapult, ruining one of the magnetic runways.

"Do we have any other mobile suits to send out?" Durandal asked.

"We have no available pilots," Talia said. She hit the comm button. "Mister Aves, send out Rey in the ZAKU Phantom immediately."

* * *

The gray ZAKU Phantom stepped out a few minutes later, hugging the _Minerva_'s side to avoid falling out because of the trembling. Rey carefully guided the machine out of the ship, steering clear of the wall.

As Neo headed for the ship in his Exus, he once again felt a tingling in the back of his mind._ Who are you?_

Shinn, Lunamaria, James, and Thirteen began to head back, but as Luna pushed forward, the Chaos appeared once again and fired, nearly blasting the ZAKU's arm off.

"_Don't these guys ever give up?"_

"Did you ever give up trying to kill Alex?" Five asked.

"_Oh, shut up."_

* * *

"Captain, how many starboard thrusters do we have left?" Athrun asked.

Talia looked at Durandal, not sure how to answer. He smiled. "Go ahead and tell him, captain. We do have more pressing issues than the details of our vessel."

"We have six left," Talia told him. "Do you have a plan, Mister Zala?"

"We should activate all of them, and at the same time fire all starboard weapons, using the force of the explosion to break away," Athrun said.

"_Not a bad idea," _Djarum said. _"Actually, it's just about your only option."_

"I think it's a bad idea," Arthur said. "The ship be further damaged by the asteroid chunks."

"It's better than being a sitting duck," Athrun said sharply. "Well, captain?"

Talia stayed silent for a few moments. Djarum looked at his watch. _"Tick tock, captain."_

"I'm afraid Mister Zala's right," Talia said. "Arthur, do it."

* * *

Rey felt the tingling sensation again, and he pulled back on the sticks, and the ZAKU Phantom cut its thrusters just in time to avoid several beams fired from the gunbarrels.

"Who is this kid?" Neo wondered. He cursed as Rey turned around and shot a Dagger L right in the chest.

"All Dagger pilots," Neo said over the comm. "Attack the enemy vessel."

Rey looked back and piloted the ZAKU towards the enemy forces. Neo launched the gunbarrels again, the weapons firing wildly. The ZAKU moved it legs and spun away before firing its rifle once. It followed up with a missile barrage which was sent towards the Dagger L. The beam tore through the machine's legs, throwing it out of balance. The pilot turned his machine around just in time to see the rockets strike. The mobile suit just floated for several seconds, slowly spinning, before the reactor blew.

Meanwhile, Lunamaria fired her cannon at the Abyss again. The unit pulled back and fired its triple beam cannons. The ZAKU launched itself to the side instantly.

The Blast Impulse finally came back to the fight, and Shinn fired the Firefly missiles. Sting fired the beam rifle, the Chaos trying to outrun the projectiles. "Why can't I hit this guy?!"

On the _Girty Lue_, Lee smiled. "Finish that ship off now," he ordered.

The _Minerva _suddenly activated all of its thrusters and began turning faster than Lee would have thought possible. "What the-"

The Minerva fired all of its rear weapons, the explosion pushing it forward. Lee watched in horror as the ship's nose opened, revealing the Tannhauser cannon. It fired, the blood red beam striking _Girty Lue'_sstarboard section. The ship turned away, smoke and flame trailing behind it.

Neo pulled the mobile armor out and flew back to the ship, surprised to see that its rear engines had been damaged.

"Lee! Withdraw our forces now!" He ordered. _This was not supposed to happen._

* * *

"Ma'am, Shinn and Lunamaria are low on power, and it appears that the _Zacynthus_'s machines are running low, as well," Meyrin informed Talia. The captain shook her head.

"It looks like we'll have to try another strategy," Durandal said softly.

"Meyrin, order a recall for all mobile suits. There's nothing more we can do out there," Talia said.

A few hours later, Cagalli was on the bridge, with James, Five, and Thirteen behind her.

"We have a rescue ship from Armory One coming to pick you up," Talia told her. Before she could contnue, Durandal stood up.

"I'd like to thank you, Mister Zala," Durandal said, looking at him. "You saved us thanks to your actions."

"No," Athrun said, looking at them apologetically. "I overstepped my bounds."

"It's alright," Talia said. Before she could say anything else, he saluted and walked out. As he made his way to the mess hall, he couldn't help but remember the madness of the last war. The chaos, the anger, the deaths of friends like Nicol.

James looked at the chairman, saluting. "Sorry about this, chairman. I've gotta make sure his head's in the right place." James walked away and followed Athrun. he ran up to him and slapped him on the shoulder gently. Athrun looked at him. James sighed. "I know what you're going through. Don't think I didn't shed any tears for Alex or any of his buddies, because I did. But what happened out there was not your fault. None of us could do anything. We minimized the damage as best we could."

"It wasn't enough," Athrun said quietly.

Shinn, Lunamaria, and Rey were coming down the hallway, and Meyrin ran into them. "Hey, guys. I just saw Athrun talking to that guy from _Zacynthus."_

They headed towards the lounge, Shinn feeling nothing but hate for the young pilot. He didn't understand why everyone treated them like they were special.

When they entered the mess hall, Shinn saw him sitting at a table, talking to James in a low voice.

"Hi, Athrun!" Lunamaria said cheerfully.

Athrun looked at her and sighed. "I'm just Alex. Not Athrun."

Shinn snorted. "Typical of a guy from Orb. You don't understand anything."

James stood up and grabbed Shinn by his collar. "Say that again, Asuka. Just give me an excuse."

"You're defending him, too? Well, I guess a traitor woul-oof!"

Shinn never saw the hit coming. He fell to the ground and clutched his stomach in pain.

"I'm no traitor, Asuka. Neither is Zala. We both made mistakes, like the one you just made. Now do yourself a favor and walk away," James said.

Shinn slowly got, Lunamaria helping him up. "Cowards from Orb always stick together, huh?" He asked, taking a deep breath.

James cracked his knuckles, chuckling. "Asuka, you're depending a girl just to stay upright. What's that say about ZAFT pilots? Wimps."

Shinn turned red with anger, and Luna held him so he wouldn't try anything.

"Nothing to say now, kid?" James asked.

Lunamaria pulled Shinn away quickly. James sighed and looked at Athrun.

"Did you have to hit him?" Athrun asked.

James snorted. "What, are you kidding me? The kid needed a good hit, and that's what he got. You've gotten soft. You're not turning into Yamato, are you?"

"Don't bring him up here," Athrun said sharply. "You want people to ask questions about him and the others?"

James nodded. "You're right. Sorry. Come on. I'll get you a sandwich."

Athrun laughed and shook his head, following the young captain.

* * *

At a AZFT observation tower, one of the crew noticed an irregularity. He punched it onto the screen and zoomed in before running the numbers. The man's eyes widened. "Sir!" He yelled.

"What is it?"

"Junius Seven! It's moved out of a stable orbit, sir!"

"That's impossible! Someone check it again!" The commander said.

"We have, sir!"

"Well? What's its course?" The man barked.

"Earth."

* * *

AUHTOR'S NOTE: Done. Only a day late. Sorry. Had a bunch of stuff going on yesterday. Won't happen again. Let me know what you think. Hellshadow.


	5. Unhealing Scar

I DO NOT OWN GUNDAM

***

The GINN High Maneuver Type II hovered protectively above the others as the machines attached flare motors to the surface. When they were done, they slowly moved away and watched as the rotors activated. The device turned on and started spinning, a low whining sound coming from it. It burrowed its way onto the ground. A few minutes later, the giant slab once known as Junius Seven slowly began moving towards Earth.

Inside one of the GINNs, the pilot activated his comm. "I, Sato, hereby declare that I will have revenge against those who spread deception across the world, choosing to forget the past."

He smiled as his former home drifted away from him. "Your deaths were not for nothing," he whispered.

The other pilots shouted a victory cry and got into formation.

***

Meyrin and Djarum Gale, Jr. both noticed the object on the sensors. Djarum nearly passed out when he saw the data.

"Um, boss?" Djarum said, raising a hand as if in a classroom.

"What is it?" James asked.

"You're not gonna like this."

"Another rumor about the many bribes Alex gave out to earn his status?" James asked.

"No. Kinda worse, actually," Djarum said, a shaky finger pointing at his screen. James sighed and got up. He walked over to the man and looked over his shoulder.

"Damn it to hell," he muttered.

On the _Minerva_, Durandal got off the bed and answered his comm. "Yes?"

Behind him, Talia Gladys covered herself with the sheet.

***

A while later, the two came onto the bridge, greeted by Athrun, Cagalli, and Five. James turned on his video feed, giving only a nod.

"It appears Junius Seven has begun moving out of orbit," Talia began the conversation. Cagalli looked at her, eyes wide in fear.

"How is that even possible?" Athrun asked, surprised.

"_Junius Seven should be stable for another hundred years, at least," _Djarum said, checking something on his end. _"And I don't screw up my calculations."_

"_You screwed up making toast earlier today," _James quipped.

"_That's because you yanked the cord!" _Djarum yelled.

"_Minerva _and _Zacynthus _will investigate this matter," Durandal said quite calmly. He looked at Cagalli. "I must apologize, Miss Attha. Once again, I'm putting you into a dangerous situation."

"_Don't worry, chairman," _James said over the comm. _"Miss Attha's been in plenty of dangerous situations before. I'm sure she doesn't mind one more to add to her list."_

Cagalli glared at the screen, but didn't respond to the remark. "What would happen if Junius Seven hits Earth?" She asked, looking at the chairman.

"_Well, based on the slab's size, it would pretty much cause a massive tsunami that would cover most of Asia. The rest of the world would go into nuclear winter within just a few months. Basically, if that thing drops, game over," _Djarum said, looking grim. _"Not that you were asking me."_

"Chairman, if there's anything Orb can do-"

Durandal cut her off. "If we require Orb's help, Miss Attha, we'll ask for it."

Cagalli sighed and Athrun escorted her out, followed by Five and Thirteen. The two had stood outside the door, listening in remotely. "Don't worry, Miss Attha. We'll figure this out," Five said.

"I wish it were that easy," Cagalli said glumly.

Thirteen took them towards the mess hall, and Athrun wondered how he knew where he was going. The man didn't take one uncertain step. Five stood by the doorway as it slid open, allowing Cagalli to in first. He turned around and extended his arm to the right. Athrun walked through the door, shaking his head as he smiled. Cagalli nodded and went in, noticing Vino and Yolant at a table, talking about Junius Seven.

"Our only course of action is to shatter it into smaller pieces," Rey said, not taking his eyes off his computer. He was sitting at a far table, concentrating on what was on the screen. Yolant and Vino were standing behind him, watching as he input calculations into the computer.

"Or we could just let it hit earth," Yolant said. "It would comfort people in the PLANTs, at least."

Cagalli looked at him, stunned by what he'd just said. She walked towards them, furious. "What did you just say?"

Thirteen tried to hold her back, but she shrugged his arm off. "Is this how everyone in ZAFT thinks since the end of the last war?!"

"Can't you see Yolant isn't even being serious?" Shinn asked angrily. He stood up and walked towards her. "You Atthas really are pathetic."

Five stepped forward and grabbed his shoulder. "I don't think so, kid."

"Still, you should be a little more tactful with what you say," Rey said, looking at Shinn and Yolant. "Apologize, Yolant."

Yolant sighed and looked at Cagalli. "Sorry. I'll be more careful."

"Why do you hate Orb so much?" Athrun asked suddenly. "I hope it's not something foolish."

"My entire family was killed because of the Attha's ideals," Shinn said, disgusted. "Did your family ever consider how many people would die for those ideals? You don't know anything." He batted Five's arm away and walked out, followed by Vino.

"Well," Five said, walking back to stand by Athrun. "That was interesting."

"That's for sure," Athrun muttered.

***

On Earth, the members or Blue Cosmos sat down and greeted their leader, Lord Djibril. He smiled and nodded.

"Sir, I assume you know of the possible end of Earth," one said

"There is no need for concern," Djibril said, smiling again. "I've already sent Phantom Pain to investigate."

He looked at the men around him. "At first, people will ask how Junius Seven began to move on its own. Once it falls, they will ask why this happened. Our answer must be to blame the coordinators. They've built numerous things in space, including the PLANTs. And after the war two years ago, no one will question it."

"What should we do?" Another asked.

"We should evacuate Earth," Djibril said clearly. "Wait, and then return to unite the survivors against all coordinators. We'll finally be able to wipe them out, all according to our plans."

"Well, then," I guess there are no other questions," another member said, standing up. "We'll meet again once the problem with Junius Seven is solved."

"Of course. For the preservation of a blue and pure world."

***

The _Minerva _and _Zacynthus _joined two other _Nazca _class vessels. The _Voltaire _and _Rousseau _decelerated, allowing _Zacynthus _to form up alongside them. The two ships were equipped with meteor breaker equipment. _Zacynthus _powered up its weapons systems, in case any other vessels interfered with the operation.

"There's been no response from the Earth Alliance forces," Meyrin informed Durandal.

"We have to help save our mother planet," Durandal said. "There's no other action that can be justified."

"_I guarantee you the Earth forces aren't responding because they're looking for an excuse to start another war," _James said over the comm. _"I'm not as optimistic as Alex would be if he were here. He'd just say they're being ignorant."_

"You're merely expecting the worst," Durandal said.

"_Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. That's how I plan my days," _James said.

"A wise way of thinking," Durandal replied. James sighed. _Wise, yes. But it's never a crime to dream for a miracle._

***

Athrun walked into Cagalli's room and sat down on the edge of the bed. "Hey," he said softly, handing her a drink. "Forget what Shinn said. I've suffered because of my decisions, as well." He thought about Junius Seven, and fighting Kira. "Shinn is too caught up in his own emotions to see things any other way." He lay down next her and wrapped his arms around her. "It'll be okay."

***

On the _Voltaire_, Yzak Joule looked out the side viewport at _Zacynthus._

"Surprised that they came along?" Dearka Elsman asked, smiling. Yzak glared at him.

"So I take it that's a yes."

"Make sure you work efficiently in deploying the meteor breakers," Yzak said, ignoring his question. "We don't have any time to waste."

"Yes, sir, commander!"

Yzak rolled his eyes.

***

Lunamaria bumped into Athrun in the corridor an hour later. "How's Miss Attha?" She asked.

Athrun sighed. "Cagalli lost friends and family in the last war, as well. I'm not sure if Shinn can understand that."

Lunamaria smiled sadly. "Don't take it too hard. He's kinda thickheaded."

Athrun smiled back and continued towards the bridge. He went in and saluted at the chairman.

"Ah, Athrun," Durandal greeted him. "Is there something you need?"

"Actually, I was wondering if Captain Gladys would be willing to lend me a mobile suit," Athrun said. Talia looked at him in surprise.

"Are you looking to let Chairman Canaver's arrangement go to waste?" She asked.

"Not at all, captain," Athrun said, looking at her. "But I can't just sit around and not do anything."

"You do have a point, Mister Zala," Durandal said. "Very well. I see no reason to hold you back."

"Chairman!" Talia looked him, shocked.

"We're not heading into a combat situation, captain," Durandal explained. "But we will need all available support. Mister Zala has proven several times already that he is more than capable of being helpful in difficult situations. I think this is one of those times."

***

Dearka watched from his Gunner ZAKU as the meteor breakers burrowed into Junius Seven. _Almost there, _he thought. The operation was going without a hitch. His scanners suddenly went off, and he turned his unit around. Several GINN High Maneuver mark IIs came out of hiding, firing at the devices. "GINNs?!" Dearka exclaimed, surprised. "Should have known the luck wouldn't last!" He watched as two GuAIZ R units were torn to shreds by beam fire. "Um, I'm gonna need some backup here!" He broadcast. The Gunner ZAKU fired its long range beam cannon, scattering the mobile suits.

Not far away, the _Girty Lue _launched its stolen prototypes.

***

"Shinn Asuka, Core Splendor, launching!"

The tiny fighter flew towards the former colony, followed by his parts, and the GM Cannon.

"_That's the biggest moving violation I've ever seen."_

Five's voice was clear and sarcastic, and Shinn couldn't help but smile at the comment. Behind him, the GM Kai, ZAKU Phantom, Gunner ZAKU, and GM Cannon formed up, ready to stop the wreckage from hitting Earth.

Inside _Minerva_, a final machine was prepped. Athrun put on the helmet and sighed. Once again, he was heading for the battlefield. But this time, he was going for the right reasons. "Athrun Zala, ZAKU, launching!"

***

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Done on time again. Let me know what you think. Hellshadow


	6. Armageddon

Junius Seven continued to slowly approach Earth. Five shook his head in disgust. _How the hell did it get out of orbit?_

The GM Kai moved away from the group and came to a complete stop.

"_Hey! Trying to catch a good look?" _Thirteen broadcast.

"Yeah," Five said. The GM's optical sensor flashed once, zooming in on the former colony. "There's no way this is natural."

"_Huh?"_

"Judging from the angle of descent, it's not a natural occurrence," Five explained. "Too sudden. If it had the slightest possibility of falling earlier, somebody would have noticed."

"_Guys, we've got trouble," _Athrun's voice cut in.

The two GM units turned upward, noticing flickering lights above Junius Seven. The two mobile suits moved as on towards the battle.

***

Yzak cursed as he watched another GuAIZ R get cut in half by one of Sato's men. "Damn it!" Yzak yelled. "Send out the beam rifles!" He activated the comm. "Dearka, hold them off as best as you can. I'm coming to help you."

"_I'll do my best."_

Meanwhile, Shinn waited impatiently as the Core Splendor docked with the Chest Flyer. The Leg Flyer then attached itself, giving the unit a slight boost in speed.

Talia sighed in relief as she watched Impulse head towards the battle. "It appears our enemies are using GINN HM types," she said.

"_Yup," _James said over the comm. _"Still not to be underestimated, though. If they know what they're doing_, _they can cause quite the ruckus."_

Cagalli entered the bridge and looked at Durandal. "Have you seen Athrun? I'd have thought he'd want to know how it's going."

"And he does know," Durandal explained. "He's decided to help Shinn and the others."

Cagalli gaped at him with wide eyes. "Why would he do that?!" She asked, outraged.

"He felt he should contribute something. Being a former mobile suit pilot, he can't stand the thought of not helping when he's in the position to do so," Gilbert continued.

***

The Chaos and Abyss launched simultaneously from the _Girty Lue_, heading straight for the colony. They were undetected by either party, as they were both occupied. Yzak's Slash ZAKU Phantom entered the fight, pulling out its beam axe. One of the GINNs tried to attack from behind, but Yzak tugged the stick back, and the ZAKU swung hard to the right, cutting the enemy unit in half. "Don't mess with me!" Yzak snarled.

"_I think he's dead, Yzak," _Dearka's voice came in, sounding bored. His Gunner ZAKU came up alongside him, firing several shots at a small group of GINNs.

The Chaos opened fire, the beam barely missing the Gunner ZAKU's head. "Time to go to work," Dearka said, firing back.

Not far behind them, Athrun and the others arrived. Lunamaria noticed the stolen machines, and was instantly angry. "Time to get some payback," she snarled.

"_No," _Athrun's voice came in. _"That's not our mission."_

"_He's right," _Five piped in. _"Right now, the colony is the priority. The machines can wait a bit longer."_

***

"Captain, perhaps we should attack," Arthur suggested, looking at Talia.

"I'm starting to wonder if perhaps Bogey One's crew believe we caused Junius Seven's trajectory to change," Durandal said softly.

"That's rather preposterous," Arthur said, smiling weakly.

"But if it were Daggers attacking, rather than GINNs, we would immediately think it was the Alliance," Talia replied.

"We should contact Bogey One, and let them know what we're trying to do," Durandal suggested.

***

Shinn groaned in frustration as the Abyss kept attacking. The Abyss raised its beam lance and brought it down hard. Shinn's quick reflexes saved him as the Impulse blocked the strike. The Gaia launched itself at Luna's ZAKU, only to get kicked away. The Chaos launched both its gunbarrels. Thirteen threw his machine into a roll, avoiding the beams by mere inches. Athrun fired a single shot, destroying one of the weapons. The ZAKU threw its beam tomahawk, cutting the second one into nothingness.

"Who is this guy?" Sting wondered aloud. Before he knew it, Athrun's ZAKU was in front of him. Sting panicked and fired his CIWS, but being so close, the rounds went past the ZAKU as it punched the Chaos.

Yzak continued to fire at the GINNs, trying to keep them off the GuAIZ troops.

***

In the Marshall Islands, Kira sat in a small chair outside, thinking to himself. Lacus laughed as she played with the children.

***

The GuAIZ R pilots watched as the meteor breakers dug into the ground and began breaking the colony apart. After a few minutes, a massive tear began moving down the center of the colony, breaking the large rock into two. Athrun's joy turned to horror as he noticed that only one of the pieces was moving away from Earth. The other continued to slowly descend.

"We have to do more," Athrun broadcast. Yzak and Dearka were surprised to hear his voice, to say the least.

"Why the hell are you here?!" Yzak demanded.

Athrun smiled.

"_Cut the chitchat," _Five broadcast. _"You ladies wanna have a fight, take it somewhere else."_

The two GM units blew past them. "You haven't changed, Yzak," Athrun said, smiling.

Inside the Slash ZAKU Phantom, Yzak allowed himself to smile. He, Dearka, and Athrun got their machines to grab the last meteor breaker and slowly made their way towards the drop point.

"_Trouble."_

Dearka's warning came too late. Beams suddenly came out of nowhere, making their journey much more difficult. The GM Kai moved in, pulling a beam saber. One of the GINNs turned towards it and fired. The GM spun away and came around, stabbing it with its beam saber from behind.

The GM Cannon fired several warning shots, to no avail. "OK, if that's how you want it."

The prototype flew forward, pulling out two beam pistols. The weapons fired, hurling tiny beams at the GINNs. The weapons fire blanketed the machines, but didn't destroy them.

"_Ha! What kind of weapon is that?"_

Thirteen didn't answer. Instead, he fired on shot from his turrets, grazing the GINN.

"_Still can't hit me! Some pilot you-wait, what's-AUGH!"_

The GINN was still coming at him, but it was slowly breaking apart. The foot broke off, and the left leg crumbled away. The machine raised its arms and grabbed the GM, but Thirteen activated his reverse thrusters, pulling away. The GINN groaned, and its arms broke off, sparking dangerously.

"No, I'm quite the pilot," Thirteen broadcast. "And now you know why."

The GINN's head broke off, and the GM fired at the chest. The GINN literally exploded into thousands of pieces, the wreckage bouncing off the GM.

The Chaos and Abyss attacked, startling Dearka. "Not good," he said.

"_Watch out, Yzak!"_

"_I don't take orders from you!" _Yzak's voice made Dearka wince.

"They're like a married couple," Dearka said, shaking his head. Yzak rushed the Abyss, slicing one of its legs off. The Chaos came up behind it, only to receive a similar swipe across its chest.

"Is this the strength of the veterans from the last war?" Shinn asked himself, astounded by their skills.

***

"Chairman, I suggest you transfer over to the _Voltaire,_" Talia told him. "I'll be taking the _Minerva _into the atmosphere, and then fire the ship's main cannons at Junius Seven."

Durandal stood up. "Very well. I wish you luck, captain. Perhaps Miss Attha would like to accompany me."

Cagalli shook her head. "I'm sorry, chairman. I need to see this through to the end."

They watched as Bogey One launched its signal flares.

"They're retreating?" Cagalli asked.

"More likely, they don't want to be caught in Earth's gravity," Talia said.

As the others returned to the _Minerva _and _Zacynthus,_ only Shinn and Athrun remained. Shinn guided the Impulse towards the ZAKU, only to get cut off by Sato and two other GINNs. Athrun's ZAKU launched, slamming into Sato's unit head on.

"_How could you forget those who died here?!" _Sato's voice rang in his ears. _"ZAFT has become weak. Patrick Zala's path was the right one."_

Athrun froze in shock. Sato used his brief relapse and cut off the ZAKU's arm. The GINN grabbed the machine and headed further into the atmosphere. Athrun was still unable to respond, even though he knew they were both heading for death.

The Impulse suddenly came up behind Sato, pulling its beam saber. It cut off the machine's arms and grabbed the ZAKU. Sato tried to follow, but Shinn hit the pedals, the Impulse kicking the GINN away. Sato screamed as he crashed into the colony.

Shinn struggled with the controls, trying to get out of the gravity well. However, the pull was too strong, and the ZAFT units plunged towards the world below.

AUTHOR NOTE: Sorry for the delay. Not the best, but it was all I had. I'll try to do better.


	7. Chapter 7

The _Minerva _slowly rotated to its right, now facing the giant, burning remains of Junius Seven. The Tannhauser cannon slid out of the front, aimed at the former colony. Nearby, the _Ark _got into position as well.

"Captain, we can't locate Athrun or Shinn," Meyrin reported.

"Either way, we have to destroy the fragments," Talia replied.

"_Our GM units just barely made it back," _Djarum said. _"Should we start?"_

The _Minerva _fired one shot, striking the side of the obstacle. A large chunk broke off and slowly drifted away. Not far away, Shinn frantically adjusted his reentry angle, trying to save the Impulse from burning up. He noticed Athrun's ZAKU unit was going down way too fast.

The machine's shield suddenly broke off, and the ZAKU started spinning violently. The _Minerva _fired one last shot, destroying the colony completely. Debris began raining down, chunks of rock fragments spreading all over the atmosphere. They struck Rome, China, Greece. All over the world, cities were ruined.

On the _Girty Lue_, Stella watched in horror. "Is everyone going to die?" She whispered.

"Begin searching for Athrun and Shinn!" Talia ordered.

"I wonder if they survived," Arthur said.

"I hope so," Talia replied.

* * *

The ZAKU's boosters shut down, and the ZAFT unit plunged towards the earth.

"_I'm on my way, Athrun!"_

Athrun looked at the comm in surprise. "Are you insane?! Not even the Impulse can slow us down."

A few seconds later, the suit shook violently as the Impulse caught it. The _Minerva _fired a flare to help the pilots locate them.

Once they landed, Cagalli rushed over to Athrun and hugged him. The ship shook suddenly, and Athrun looked around, alert. Rey walked over to him.

"It's probably the first shockwave from the impact," he explained.

The _Minerva _touched down on the sea roughly, the crew jolted by the impact. The _Ark _didn't even land on the water, opting to hover above it. Vino looked at Yolant. "The sea's pretty big, huh?"

"I'm sorry I went out on my own," Athrun was telling Cagalli.

"It's ok," she replied. "I know how skilled you are, and I'm glad you launched. We were able to minimize the damage, too."

"You're an idiot."

Cagalli turned around, stunned. Shinn glared at her. "The fall of Junius Seven wasn't natural. It was carried out by coordinators. They were bitter about the Bloody Valentine and thought all Naturals should be exterminated."

"The fragments still cause damage," Athrun told her. "I'm not sure the Naturals will forgive us."

"You still don't understand anything," Shinn said. "I feel sorry for you, Athrun."

Durandal held a press conference later that day. "I promise to provide aid in every possible way to help the people of Earth get through this dark time," he finished.

Djibril turned off the TV, smirking. "Despite the kind words, it appears the chairman knew more than he said."

He tossed several photos onto the table. The pictures showed GINNs attaching flare rotors to Junius Seven. "No one will forgive the coordinators for this. We finally have a chance to destroy all of them.

* * *

"We'll be heading to Orb as soon as repairs are completed," Talia told Cagalli.

"I'd like to show my gratitude, but I'm not sure it'll be possible," Cagalli answered.

Out on the deck, Lunamaria and Meyrin engaged in target practice. Rey stood next to them, also. Rey bulls eyed every target, surprising the girls.

"I'm not too good at this," Lunamaria told Athrun, nodding as James came up behind him. "Since you two are heroes among ZAFT, why don't you try?"

Athrun looked at James and nodded. "Where have you been?"

"Dealing with the aftermath," James replied. "Sorry I've been scarce."

The two aimed their weapons and fired. Every target that came up was immediately dropped. Shinn watched in amazement.

"This skill is unnecessary for me," Athrun said, handing her the gun back.

"It's good for protecting yourself," Lunamaria answered,

"True," James threw in, holstering his weapon.

"Why do you want to go back to Orb?" Shinn asked suddenly. Athrun walked off without saying anything.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Late. I've been kind of sick, and it's slowed down my writing. Quality, too. I'll get better as soon as I can. Hellshadow


	8. The Junction

The _Zacynthus _and _Ark _slowly docked at Onogoro Island. Five couldn't help but feel nervous. The last time he'd been here, the Alliance had attacked. He turned to see Cagalli walk down the ramp. One of the people who'd come out to greet them rushed forward and hugged Cagalli.

"Yuna, control yourself," a man behind him said.

_So that's Yuna Roman Seiran, _Zero thought.

"I'm Captain Talia Gladys," Talia introduced herself. "This is Arthur Trine, and the silent one is called Zero."

"I'm Unato Seiran," the man replied. "Welcome to Orb. I'd also like to thank you for protecting Miss Cagalli."

"I'd like to apologize for the damage caused by Junius Seven. I know the damage was massive," she replied.

"How bad was the damage?" Cagalli asked, walking up to them.

"The coastal areas were hit, but it wasn't as bad as in other countries," Unato told her. "We also have some matters to discuss."

Yuna put an arm around her and pulled her away, giving Athrun a smirk. James came up to Athrun and looked at him. "If you'd like, I can stab him to death."

Athrun looked at him, surprised by what he said.

"Oh, relax," James said, grinning. "Too easy, and not embarrassing enough for Yuna."

Not far away, Murrue Ramius and Andrew Bartfeld watched. She was glad to see that Athrun and Zero were alive and well. "I wonder what'll happen now," she said.

Andrew looked at her. "Don't worry about it."

* * *

Unato looked at Cagalli. "We're considering the Federation's offer to form an alliance."

Cagalli stared at him wide eyed. "What?"

"The Federation's deal extends to all nations around the globe and include aid for damaged nations," he explained to her.

"But the chairman and the _Minerva _did everything to stop Junius Seven," Cagalli argued. Unato turned on the TV and showed her the pictures. Cagalli groaned as she saw the images of GINNs planting the charges on the colony.

"We have to consider who we will share our pain with in the wake of this tragedy," Unato said to her.

* * *

"Arthur, you and Abes are in charge of the ship," Talia told him as she got up.

"We should get repaired at Carpentaria," Arthur told her.

Talia sighed. "We're here, Arthur. And Carpentaria's a long way from here."

Murrue and Ramius and Kojiro Murdoch walked in. Thirteen nodded, and Murrue smiled and returned the gesture. "A ship's safety and readiness is more important than its classified technology," she said.

"And you are?" Talia asked.

"Maria Barnes," Murrue said, and Thirteen gave a small shake of his head from amusement.

"Is this the right time to be repairing a ZAFT vessel?" Talia asked.

"Maybe, but there's no point worrying about the future," Murrue answered.

* * *

Shinn was lying in bed, looking at Mayu's cell phone when Rey came in. "Do you have any idea how long we'll be here?" Shinn asked.

"I don't know," Rey said plainly, heading for the washroom.

* * *

Athrun and James were in a car, heading along the coast when James noticed several people. "Hey, pull in there," he told Athrun.

Several children ran up to them when they exited the car. James smiled as Athrun tried to answer all their questions. Kira Yamato walked up to him and shook his hand. "Where's Cagalli?" He asked.

"She's busy at the administration building," Athrun told him. "Kira, do you remember that conversation two years, with Dearka?"

"I said we'd find the answer together," Kira said.

"I still haven't found it," Athrun said, shoulders slumping.

"Don't feel bad, Athrun," James said. "I'm still not sure I'm doing a good job with this."

* * *

Cagalli met with Athrun the next day. "I'm not comfortable with Unato's plan. It looks like another way to join countries that hate the PLANTs."

"I'm heading back to space," Athrun said suddenly. She looked at him, surprised. "I'm worried about the situation in the PLANTs. I believe in the chairman, but I don't want to sit around, doing nothing. I don't approve of you and Yuna, either." He gave her a ring, and Cagalli stood there, stunned. Athrun kissed her and walked towards the helicopter not far away.

Meanwhile, Shinn came back to the place where his family died, but he saw that it had been turned into a park. He walked up to a young brown haired man and looked at the stone in front of him. "Is that a memorial?" He asked.

"I think so, but I'm not sure," he replied. "The flowers were drenched in seawater, so they'll wither away soon."

"Even if people plant flowers, others will come to destroy them," Shinn said. A young pink haired girl walked up behind them and the young man nodded to Shinn before walking away.

"Sorry for saying some strange things," Shinn told him.

Kira Yamato just smiled and nodded.

* * *

"The Federation and several other groups have made demands for ZAFT," Unato told Cagalli. "If they aren't met, ZAFT will be labeled as a threat to humanity and the Alliance will use military force."

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Sorry for the late chapter. And for the short length. Hellshadow


	9. Chapter 9

* * *

Aprilius One

"What are they thinking? Compensation, disarmament, the resignation of every member of the council?!"

Durandal listened to the debate without saying a word.

"We should mobilize the military."

"If we do that, we'd simply be repeating history," Durandal said.

"We have to do something because of the activity at the lunar base," another member said.

"Mobilizing the military will only aggravate the situation further," Durandal explained. "I realize that the horror of the Bloody Valentine is still fresh in many people's minds." He sighed. "Mobilize ZAFT forces."

In space, Yzak and Dearka watched from the carrier ship _Gondwana _as the fleet began to move.

* * *

At the Alliance's lunar base, Djibril watched as the battleships prepared to move out. He smiled and opened a line to the White House. "How much longer?"

"_We can't rush anything, because there a quite a few nations who've opposed some of our recent actions,"_ Copeland told him.

"I don't see how anyone can oppose us," Djibril replied. _Coward. Orb is nothing to be afraid of. _"The world is a system that must be handled like a garden. The appearance fo weeds detracts from its beauty, so we must remove the weeds so that no one can oppose Logos' plans to create a new world system."

* * *

Copeland watched as the fleet began to move out. He activated the comm, broadcasting to Earth and space. "ZAFT has not met the Alliance's demands and is harboring the terrorist group responsible for the drop of Junius Seven. Therefore, I am proclaiming the PLANTs to be a threat to Earth."

GINNs headed for the fleet, ready for war. The forward group fired their heavy missiles, destroying several Dagger L units. Yzak and Dearka followed in their units, not knowing that the real threat was hidden.

A hidden fleet made its way out from behind an asteroid. The ships' bay doors opened, launching several Windams equipped with nuclear missile launchers.

A Recon GINN spotted them on his run, and relayed the information quickly.

"These guys are decoys?!" Yzak asked loudly, looking around. "Dearka!"

The ZAKU Gunner fired several shots before following Yzak's unit. "I know, I know!"

Yzak saw on his scanners that there was a Nazca class ship in ahead of the enemies. It was equipped with the new Neutron Stampeder. The Windams fired their weapons as the ship charged its main weapon. Then it fired. A beam shot towards the mobile suits, bathing them in light. The warheads shorted out and detonated, taking their carriers with them. The beam's effect traveled far, as the bombs carried by the fleet exploded as well.

Durandal smiled as he watched the information scroll down his screen. "Well, I'm glad that worked. Unfortunately, the Stampeder only has one shot."

When Djibril found out that the fleet pulled back to regroup, he was furious.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTES: I'm losing my touch, but here it is. Sorry. Hellshadow


	10. Chapter 10

Kira and Lacus looked up at the sky. The detonations of the nuclear warheads were quite visible. Kira couldn't help but remember Rau le Creuset and his mission of genocide.

At the PLANTs, the news agency was announcing the Alliance's attempt to make another nuclear strike, and how ZAFT forces repelled it. Athrun watched in disbelief, shaking his head. Zero looked at him and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Don't worry about it," he said. "It didn't succeed."

"I'm surprised not just by the swiftness of the attack, but by the fact that the Alliance used nuclear weapons," Durandal said calmly. "The situation is quite precarious. We're in a position similar to the last war."

"What will you do?" Zero asked.

"If we use military force, the PLANTs will once again be involved in a full scale war," Durandal replied.

"Sir, I beg you," Athrun said, walking up to the chairman. "Don't respond out of hatred. Don't spread the foolishness that my father did two years ago. I believed my father's words, and as a result, I killed many people. And I almost killed several friends.

Durandal held one hand up. "I have no intention of doing that. Shinn told me what the Junius Seven terrorists said. Was Patrick Zala always evil?"

Athrun hesitated for a second. "No, sir, he wasn't."

"However misguided your father was," Durandal said, "everything he did was for the sake of the PLANTs. People only hear what they want to hear, and those terrorists twisted Zala's words to benefit their anger towards Naturals. You shouldn't bear the burden of what your father did, or what his followers did."

"I think the phrase he's looking for is 'the sins of the father are not the sins of the son', Athrun," Zero said. "Or something like that."

Durandal smiled. "I'm glad you're dedicated to peace."

The three looked at the screen as the fake Lacus Clyne came on. Zero shuddered inside as he looked at her. _That's not Lacus Clyne._

"_The drop of Junius Seven and the nuclear attack by the Alliance are tragic events," _she said, appearing sad._ "But responding in anger will only lead to another war."_

"I apologize for this," Durandal told Athrun. "Seeing her must frustrate you. It's a pity I had to resort to using a fake Lacus, but her influence is far too great."

"_Please remain calm and trust the peace efforts made by the chairman and the Supreme Council."_

She began singing one of Lacus' songs and Five shook his head, muting the sound. _No copycat can ever replace the real Lacus, even if she uses the real song._

"I'd like the two of you to come with me," Durandal said.

"Where to?" Five asked.

Durandal simply smiled. Soon, the three were in a restricted area, and Five stared at what stood in front of him.

"The Savior," Durandal said, looking at the gray machine. It was a simple and elegant design. "Its abilities are a bit different, but it was designed at the same time as the three units stolen by the Alliance. This next one was designed at the same time as the Impulse."

A light farther down activated, illuminating another unit. It seemed similar, but lacked the plasma beam cannons of the Savior. "The ZGMF-X33S, Legacy. Thanks to Alexander Kolodziej's files, we were able to create this machine, based off the Raptor and Accipiter units. It has the same capabilities as the Savior, and also comes equipped with four RAW units. Two on the arms, and two on the legs."

Five looked at Durandal. "You were able to replicate the Remote Accelerant Weapons data?" _I thought only Djarum could pull it off._

"Well, the research allowed us to create the Chaos' mobile weapon pods," Durandal said. "How would you respond if gave these units to you?"

Five and Zero looked at him in astonishment. "Does that mean I have to return to ZAFT?"

"The offer is as I stated, no strings attached," Durandal explained.

"Chairman, I was part of an illegal genetic weapons project by the Alliance," Five said. "If you give this unit to me, you'll be taking a lot of heat."

"People with similar visions of peace should work together," Durandal explained. "It's hard to fight the world on your own, and so, power is needed. I want the two of you to be in a position of power to correct the world, should it stray down the wrong path."

He looked at Athrun. "I also want you to find the answer to your question of what you need to do and what you want to do. You two should think this offer over. I don't expect you to make a decision now."

* * *

An hour later, Five dropped Athrun off at his hotel. "Athrun," Five said.

"Yeah?"

"What are you going to do?" Five asked, stepping out of the car. Athrun looked up at the sky and sighed.

"I don't know yet," he replied. "You?"

Five snorted. "I'm going to do my best to end this before it turns into a complete catastrophe."

Athrun smiled and nodded. Five drove away as Athrun went inside. He went upstairs to his hotel room and opened the door, surprised to see the fake Lacus sitting on his bed. "Who are you?" He asked.

"I'm Meer Campbell," the girl replied. She stood up and took Athrun by the arm, surprising him. "We should go to dinner together."

"Uh…" Athrun said. "Isn't that a bit fast?"

"Did I perform as well as the real Lacus?" She asked, walking towards the window.

"I think you did a good job," Athrun replied. _Even if it was a bit excessive._

"I've always been a fan of Lacus, and I used to sing all her songs," Meer told him. "The chairman called me because I sounded like her."

"He doesn't need your help, but rather Lacus'," Athrun told her, sitting down in a chair.

"It's okay," she replied. "I don't mind being Lacus."

Athrun sighed and looked down at the ground, thinking about the Savior, and war.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Late again. With the holidays approaching, weird work hours have prevented me from posting earlier. Sorry. Hellshadow


	11. The Path One Chooses

Durandal and the Supreme Council had approved a measure to deploy ZAFT forces to defend the PLANT's rights to exist. Cagalli had a full plate, however. She'd been trying to get the members of her government to change their position on the proposed treaty with the Alliance.

"We can't join the Alliance, since they declared war so unilaterally and used a nuclear attack," she told Yuna.

"You need to stop being so childish," Yuna replied. "Everyone knows that the Atlantic Federation is forceful, but what choice do we have? If we ally ourselves with the PLANTs, our country will be attacked just like two years ago."

"I'd rather we remain neutral," Cagalli told him.

"I'm afraid that's not possible," Unato said, walking up to her. "It's better to deal with this problem with a peace treaty. The safety of Orb should be our top priority."

"I'm sorry for the rude comments," Yuna told her, escorting her out. "You look tired." He gave her a kiss on the forehead, and she smiled.

"I've still got a lot to learn," Cagalli answered.

* * *

Arthur swallowed, then looked at Captain Gladys. "We should leave Orb."

"Arthur, we have to resupply the ship," Talia told him. "And I'd rather not do anything too quickly. The Alliance fleet is still holding position. Any sudden movement on our end might upset them."

In a mansion within Orb, Andrew Bartfeld watched the news as Lacus and the children slept. Kira Yamato stood outside, thinking about Flay Allster and Tolle Koenig.

* * *

Athrun answered the door. He'd been on the couch when the doorbell rang. He pulled it open, and Yzak Joule barged in, grabbing him by the collar. "What the hell is going on here?!"

Dearka walked in calmly after him. "Yo."

"We got pulled from the battlefield to provide escort duty ," Yzak snarled. "Any idea why?"

"Um, Yzak?"

Yzak looked behind him. The tip of Five's blade was pressed right against the center of his back. "You," Yzak spat.

"I'm not Zero," Five replied. "Now let him go."

"It's okay, Five," Athrun said, raising a hand. "Yzak's always been a bit….impulsive."

"Since I'm a foreign citizen, I need an escort to roam the city, right?" Athrun asked. "I had no idea it'd be you two." He picked up his jacket and walked out.

"If you decide to go shopping, I'll never forgive you," Yzak said in a threatening voice. Five just chuckled. _Interesting coordinator, indeed._

"What are you laughing at, Chuckles?" Yzak asked, looking at him. Five sheathed the sword and walked out.

"I actually want to visit the cemetery," Athrun told Yzak. "I don't often get the chance to visit the PLANTs."

An hour later, the four of them were at the cemetery. Athrun kneeled in front of Nicol Amalfi's grave. He placed the flowers on the grave and stood.

"The Alliance won't give up on their attempts to annihilate us," Dearka said, pulling the jacket around himself as the wind picked up.

"You have to come back, Athrun," Yzak said. Athrun looked at him. It was rare to see Yzak so calm and passive. "I can help arrange everything. Dearka and I should have died before. But Durandal said something about not punishing young people for fighting in the war because they have to carry the PLANT's future."

* * *

Andrew Bartfeld sighed and sat in the chair, craning his neck. "I guess it's that time." He adjusted the bandwidth, and activated the radio signal. "Attention, _Minerva._ Do you copy?"

"_Who is this? Identify. How did you get this frequency?"_

Andy ignored the questions. "You have to leave Orb as soon as ZAFT forces drop to Gibraltar and Carpentaria. Orb is joining the Alliance. Did you copy?"

"_I can't take the word from anonymous sources," _Talia replied.

Andrew sighed and sat back. After a few seconds, he leaned forward. "This is the Desert Tiger." He disconnected before they could ask anything else. _Well, it's in their hands now._

Several hours later, Cagalli came to the _Minerva_. She ran into Shinn in the corridors. "What are you doing here?" He asked. "And how could you ally yourself with the people who attacked Orb two years ago?"

She tried to answer, but he cut her off. "If Orb becomes the enemy, I'll destroy it myself."

Cagalli quickly met with the captain and explained the situation. Talia smiled. "I understand your position. Thank you."

"I'm sorry," Cagalli told her before leaving. She couldn't help but feel as if she was selling them out.

And at the PLANTs, Athrun requested to meet with Durandal.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Finished. Sorry. With the holidays so close, I've got weird shifts. Hopefully, this was a bit better than some of the other chapters I posted. If not, I'll try to do better. Till then, Hellshadow


	12. Bloody Waters

The drop pods launched, heading down towards Gibraltar and Carpentaria to on an intercept course with the Alliance fleet. The bolts on the pods broke off and the mobile suits jumped out. A hail of fire greeted them as Jet Windams rushed in for the kill. Two ZAKU Warriors were immediately downed, their remains hurling down towards the sea.

"The _Minerva _will be exiting our territorial waters soon," an aide told Yuna Roma Seiran.

"Are the preparations complete?"

* * *

The _Minerva _slowly cruised away from Orb. Meyrin was shocked when she noticed the sensor data. "Enemy fleet directly in front of us, captain!" She reported.

Talia looked ahead, stunned.

"_Guess this is it," _James said, the _Zacynthus_ hovering next to the ship. _"My guess is that our leaving was strictly so Orb doesn't get involved."_

"Captain, the Orb fleet is positioned behind us," Meyrin reported.

"Battle alert!" Talia ordered.

On the _Zacynthus, _the mobile suits were already being prepped. Five strapped into the Legacy, activating its systems. The machine activated and the phase shift turned on, making the mobile suit's arms and legs white, while the chest and head turned yellow. "Legacy is good to go," Five reported.

"_This will probably be the toughest battle we've had so far, but I have in you," _Talia broadcast to both ships.

_Gee, thanks, _Five thought.

* * *

"Any reason we're on battle alert?" Shinn asked Lunamaria.

She shrugged. "I have no idea."

Shinn shook his head and strapped in to the Core Splendor. He launched immediately, combining the parts together to form Impulse. Rey and Lunamaria maneuvered their ZAKUs onto the top of _Minerva _to provide cover fire.

Thirteen followed suit, the GM Cannon landing above the hangar bay. A squad of Jet Windams appeared on the horizon, and the GM Cannon immediately opened fire with its long range beam rifle.

"Can't you use the turrets?!" Shinn asked, firing his beam rifle, as well.

"_They don't have a lot of range, Asuka," _Thirteen replied. _"The drawback of heavy firepower."_

The Alliance ships opened fire, peppering the sea around the _Minerva. _Thirteen took a step back as a rush of water struck the _Zacynthus, _drenching his mobile suit and obscuring his vision.

The ZAKU Gunner and the Impulse continued shooting down the approaching Windams. The Impulse took to the skies, drawing a beam saber and cutting through the units. The Legacy rushed in past Impulse, unleashing the RAWS. Four units, two on the arms, two on the legs, broke off and flew in a preprogrammed pattern, firing at any enemy unit within their flight path. Three Windams were caught in the first pass, the tiny weapons too fast for them to target.

Five smirked inside. _This unit is amazing. Gonna have to ask Djarum why he didn't become a professional engineer._

The _Minerva _and _Zacynthus _kept up a steady stream of fire, knocking out scores of missiles before they could hit.

"I don't believe this," Lunamaria said. "We've got more enemies inbound."

"_No time to complain," _Rey's voice chided. _"Just concentrate."_

* * *

"These two ships are proving to be quite resourceful," the commander said. "Bring out the Zamza-Zah."

The ships slowly moved apart, making way for a massive mobile armor that needed three pilots just to function.

"That's a big frikkin' ship," James said. "All units, new enemy inbound!"

The GM Cannon fired several shots, but the mobile armor was too fast. The Legacy aimed its beam rifle and fired once, the bolt grazing the new arrival. "Well, so much for that approach," Five muttered, yanking the controls hard to avoid being hit by it.

The _Minerva _fired its Tannhauser, and Five watched in astonishment as the mobile armor raised its back end up, activating a positron deflector shield. The beam struck it head on, stopping the armor in its tracks, but the shield held. The Impulse rushed in, trying to attack its exposed sides.

* * *

Cagalli entered the military headquarters and noticed the _Minerva _was under attack. "Yuna, what is this?"

Yuna ignored her. "If the _Minerva _enters Orb waters, you have permission to attack it."

"Yuna, I don't think-"

"Stop being so damn sentimental!" Yuna yelled at her, and she froze.

Captain Todaka looked at the _Minerva _and shook his head. "I think it's disgraceful, allying yourself with the nation that attacked our home, and then firing on the ship that tried to save it. Fire warning shot that come up short of the target."

"Those aren't our orders, sir," an aide said.

"Damn the orders," Todaka said. "I'm the captain, not Seiran."

The _Minerva _and _Zacynthus _slowly approached Orb's territory, ignoring the gunfire heading their way.

The GM Cannon fired on the Zamza-Zah as it grabbed the Impulse by the leg. The phase shift shut down, and the Zamza-Zah crushed the Impulse's leg instantly. The GM Cannon kept a steady stream of fire directed at the machine, refusing to let it target the ships.

Shinn thought about his family as his machine fell. Images of his mother, father, and sister raced through his mind. He saw a seed in front of his eyes, and it burst. Shinn suddenly felt a surge of energy, and he pulled Impulse out of the fall. "_Minerva, _fire the Deuterion beam, and send out the Force Silhouette.!" The Impulse spun away as the mobile armor fired again.

The Deuterion beam fired, connecting with Impulse's antenna, restoring power. Shinn activated phase shift once again and the Force Silhouette attached itself. The Impulse rushed at the machine, activating the beam saber. It landed feet first on, and stabbed the beam saber directly into the cockpit. Shinn pulled away as the unit fell into the ocean and exploded. Five sighed in relief as the fleet began to retreat.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Sorry. Scheduling difficulties again.


	13. Chapter 13

The _Minerva _sailed across the ocean, battered and dented from the last battle, the _Ark _trailing closely. The two ships slowly made their way towards Carpentaria, hoping for an uneventful trip. Talia reviewed the after report of Shinn's performance.

"We owe our escape to him," she told Arthur.

"I doubt even the Freedom Gundam could have done it, captain," he replied, nodding his head. "Shinn should get a medal."

"He probably will," she said, looking at the report again. "I always found it odd that he was the one who was given the Impulse, instead of Rey. Perhaps the chairman saw something special in him."

In the hangar, Shinn exited the Impulse. The engineers cheered and slapped him on the back, congratulating him on his success. Lunamaria and Rey followed him out into the hall.

"What did you do during the battle?" Lunamaria asked, and Rey looked at Shinn, wondering about the answer, as well.

"I don't know," Shinn said softly. "I was just…angry. And then, somehow, my mind cleared up."

"Well, either way, congratulations, Shinn," Rey said, smiling.

* * *

Cagalli was at a memorial site, thinking about everything that had happened recently.

"You shouldn't be out without a bodyguard," a voice said from behind her. She whirled, stunned to see Yuna standing by a car. "Come on," he said, smiling.

As they drove off, Cagalli looked at him. "What do you want, Yuna?" She asked.

"You need to work on your manners," he replied, earning a scoff. "I want the wedding to coincide with the treaty."

She shook her head. "Not happening, Yuna."

"You can't be involved with that coordinator pilot, or the people will thing you're trying to ally with the PLANTs," Yuna explained. "Are you willing to abandon your responsibilities to Orb and dare to use your name?"

* * *

At the cliff side mansion, Andrew Bartfeld hummed a tune to himself as he made his trademark coffee. He placed the cups on a large tray and took it outside, where Murrue Ramius, Nicholas Mazer, and Steven Zhupas sat, staring at the sky. Natarle Badgiruel joined them, still wearing her old Earth Forces uniform.

"Ah, the Desert Tiger's famous coffee," Steve said, grinning. He wore jeans and a deep blue shirt, in honor of Alexander Kolodziej. "And why are you still wearing that?"

Natarle smiled. "Old habits die hard. I wear it to remember what this uniform used to mean."

"I thought it was my tactics that were famous," Andy told Steve with a smirk. "And it's not a crime to honor your old allegiance."

Andy looked at the doorway. A man clad in black and silver battle armor walked out, his helmet completely black, with only a thin blue visor running vertically along it. A single katana was strapped to his back. Zero cocked his head and pointed. "That's the drink all ZAFT pilots yearn for?"

Andrew grinned. "Want one?"

Zero held his hand up. "No, thanks. I'm good."

A young girl with red hair walked outside. "Has anyone seen Kira?"

Zero looked at Flay Allster. Once, he wouldn't have hesitated in killing her. Now, she was one of the few people he'd sacrifice himself for. "Last I saw, he was upstairs, Flay."

"Thanks, Zero," she said, heading back inside. Over the last two years, the two had gotten to talking, and Flay took a liking to the mysterious warrior. Zero had still kept an eye on her to make sure she didn't hurt Kira, but after a few months, he'd accepted her.

"I don't much like Orb's decision," Andy said darkly.

"I'm sure Cagalli did what she could," Murrue replied.

"I agree," Zero said. "One child's voice isn't enough to placate an angry mob who refuses to listen to reason."

"She's not a child, Zero," Murrue told him.

"I know that," Zero explained. "As does anyone who fought with her in the last war. But in the world of politics, she's out of her league. If she were the only one in power in Orb, that'd be one thing. But she has to deal with those insufferable fools who think only of reelections. And the Seirans, from what I've managed to learn."

"Been keeping tabs, eh, Zero?" Andy asked, winking.

"Just keeping an eye out for trouble," he replied. "Mazer's been checking, as well."

The older man ran a hand though his hair. "Whaddya expect me to do, huh? Hope for the best?"

"I think Kira and Lacus will have to return to space soon if the anti-coordinator sentiment continues to grow," Andy said, looking at Murrue. "You could come along if you want."

Murrue looked out at the sea, thinking it over.

Several hours later, the house was quiet. A group of shadowy figure slowly advanced on the house, armed to the teeth. Inside the home, a single blue Haro activated and rolled itself over to Andy and Murrue. "Enemies incoming!" It alerted them. Zero came up behind them and opened the side cabinet, pulling out several more Haro, all black with red eyes.

"OK, boys, time to mobilize," he said.

"Your little project?" Andy asked, pulling out a sidearm, Murrue following suit.

"My insurance policy," he responded. "Get Yamato."

"Y'know he said you could call him Kira, right?" Andy asked, walking upstairs.

Zero kneeled and opened the door, releasing the Haros. The little machines rolled off into the night, their internal sensors homing in on the invaders. "If there is such a thing as machine cruelty, I'm guilty of it," Zero said.

"Lacus, wake up," Kira whispered to Lacus Clyne. She got up, groggy. "We have to go."

Lacus followed Kira, the children behind her. As they made their way down the corridors, Murrue shot out the window as more troops rushed in. Kira ran into his room and helped Flay up. "What's going on?" She asked.

"Nothing good," he replied.

Andy turned the corner and immediately brought his arm up defensively. A blade struck it, and he grabbed the man's other arm, wrestling him to the ground. "Not bad, junior," he grunted.

A second attacker tried to shoot him from the, but he was yanked hard by Zero before his blade impaled him through the chest from behind. Andy groaned, and his hand suddenly pooped off, revealing a hidden gun. A single round fired, catching the assassin in the throat. Zero grabbed him and pulled, performing a spin kick that sent the man hurling through the window. He helped Andy get up.

"Thanks," Andy said.

"Don't mention it," Zero replied.

Another agent rushed up and grabbed Lacus away from the children, pulling out a knife.

"Lacus!" Kira screamed, rushing in. The man tried to stab Kira, but he expertly ducked and drew a sword out, cutting the man's foot off at the ankle. He spun, smashing his elbow into the soldier's face. The man fell to the floor, blood pooling around his leg. "Sorry," Kira whispered. After the war, Kira had begun training under Zero. He wasn't as lethal, but he was good enough.

"Kira, are you alright?" Flay asked, hugging him.

"I'm fine, Flay, just looking out for her," he explained.

A sniper was hidden in the vents, taking aim at Lacus. Kira and Andy saw him above. "Zero!"

Zero dove at Lacus, pulling her to ground just as the agent opened fire. The round harmlessly struck the wall as Andy and Kira fired several times, striking the man in the head. Natarle ran over and double checked the body.

"Let's go," Andy said, helping them up. Zero drew a sidearm and fired at the men on his left as his other hand twirled the blade, cutting three others down on his right. Zero followed Andrew into the elevator. Natarle fired several times at the end of the corridor as some of the attackers tried to rush in. Zero picked up the lasy Haro and sent him on his way. The little green ball rolled quickly before turning the corner and stopping. The assassins looked at each other in surprise.

"Haro! Haro! Good-bye!"

The explosion kicked up dust and blew out the windows.

"Did you have to make those Haros explosive devices?" Lacus asked.

"Well, there wasn't enough room in them to make them gun turrets, Miss Clyne," Zero said, closing the door.

"These guys are coordinators," Andrew told them as he reloaded. "And they've had some good training."

"We did just fine, either way," Zero said, wiping the blood off his sword with a rag that was hanging inside the elevator.

Outside, the leader of the operation grimaced. "We have to kill Lacus Clyne. Bring in the ASH squad."

The new mobile suits, which seemed to be a combination of ground mobile suits and the amphibious GOOhN and Zno, slowly walked out of the water, their pincer-like hands opening to reveal dual machine guns. The machines took aim, firing at the home. The mansion slowly fell apart as the weapons fire bombarded it. Inside, Zero pushed the others into the second shelter, locking the door before the explosion reached them.

"Sounds like mobile suits," Andy remarked. "Lacus, we need the keys."

Lacus looked at him in surprise. "No, I can't."

"If you don't, we all die, Miss Clyne," Zero told her. As he said this, he withdrew a small vial and loaded it into a tiny injection gun. He pressed the needle into the soft underside of the neck and pulled the trigger. He immediately went rigid and began shaking violently after several seconds. Andy grabbed his shoulder and held him so he wouldn't fall over. "Thanks for that, Bartfeld," Zero rasped, dropping the syringe.

Kira looked at Lacus. "Give them to me," he said softly. Lacus sighed and handed them over. Kira handed one to Zero, and the two inserted the keys and turned them at the same time. The massive door in front of them slowly cranked open, the lights inside switching on, revealing two walkways. At the end of the walkways were two of the most lethal machine ever. The Freedom and Falchion units stood side by side silently. Freedom was still the same, while Falchion's phase shift was already on, the machine now black, with a deep blue jet pack.

"Let's go, buddy," Zero said, running for his machine.

Kira walked over to Flay and kissed her gently. "I'll be alright," he told her.

Flay nodded. "Be careful, Kira."

Kira smiled. "Don't worry."

Zero got into the Falchion and a computer screen turned on, revealing a thin face with black eyes and no hair to speak of.

"I take it things have finally escalated?" The face asked in a deep tone of voice.

"Not now, CABAL," Zero said.

"I did calculate the probability of this event, with a rate of 86 percent," CABAL told him.

"Just start her up," Zero said, in no mood to argue with the AI. The newly refitted Falchion activated and followed Freedom out, firing at the hangar door. The enemy mobile suits turned around, and the pilots were stunned to see the machines.

"Freedom!" One pilot said, a chill going up his spine.

The ASH units opened fire, Freedom diving for the ground as Falchion blasted to the side, unleashing a hail of beams with its modified long range beam rifle. Two beams struck an ASH in the head, and the machine fell over backwards, disabled. Freedom came in low, using its beam saber to cut off the arms of the remaining units. Falchion fired its new Xiphias rail cannons, which were identical to Freedom's. The beams tore through another ASH unit. The machine exploded, blanketing the sensors due to the smoke. The last pilot panicked and fired everywhere. His eyes widened as he saw the Freedom's yellow visual sensors coming at him, and he screamed as the ASH was picked up and thrown to the ground. The man groaned and pulled a handle beside him. The ASH detonated, and Kira was frozen in shock.

Up high, Zero wondered who they were, and why they wanted Lacus Clyne dead. _At least they weren't after me. But they will be, soon enough, _he thought.

* * *

Author's Note: Finished. Kira and Zero are back in the game. I hope you enjoyed it.


	14. Flight to the Future

Zero walked around what remained of the house, examining the wreckage. He looked down at the ground and kicked some broken boards to the side before looking at the sun.

"This wasn't your fault," a voice behind him said.

Zero turned around, noticing Father Malchio. "Forgive me if I don't believe you. I should have seen this coming earlier."

The reverend came up to him, placing a hand on his battle armor. "This wasn't the result of your battles. You weren't their target, and even if you were, I would not blame you for this."

"Feelin' sorry for yourself?" a gruff voice chimed in. Zero looked back, seeing Mazer come up. "Don't. This was ZAFT, not the Alliance."

Andrew and Lacus joined them. "Those were ASH units," Andy informed them. "They're brand new models exclusive to ZAFT. We may have to rethink our plan of going to space."

"Is that a good move?" Kira asked from behind him. Andy just looked at Zero, who shrugged. Suddenly Zero's head cocked to the side, and he dashed up the nearby hill. Andrew followed him, drawing a pistol. A small shuttle came in for a landing, and Andrew checked the clip in his gun while Zero calmly walked forward onto the landing strip.

"Zero!" Andrew screamed at him. "Are you insane?!"

Zero kept walking slowly. He stopped just before the halfway point and turned his head to the side, watching the craft approach. The wheels touched down and squealed as it employed its breaks. The front wheel passed right by his face, and he didn't even flinch. He followed the jet as it turned to the side. Andrew breathed a sigh of relief and holstered his weapon. "Hell of a risk," he muttered, smiling to himself.

Zero walked up to the shuttle door as it opened. He was surprised to see Cagalli's maid rush down the stairs. "I have a message from Miss Cagalli to Mister Yamato."

"This way," Zero said, escorting her to the house. "Kira! Message!"

Kira came out and greeted Myrna before opening the envelope she handed him.

_"I'm sorry I can't say this in person, but the situation's out of my control. Orb needs strong leadership. I'm marrying Yuna to ensure that. Please give Athrun the ring back. I can't wear it anymore. But I didn't want it to be taken away, either._

Kira kept reading, anguish in his heart. Zero used his enhanced sensor capabilities to read what was on the paper, and he couldn't shake the feeling that Cagalli was not the only one making the decisions in Orb.

"Kira, I have an idea," he said.

* * *

Cagalli sat in a waiting room, wearing a white wedding dress. She sighed and thought about the first time she'd met Athrun. She thought about the time she had a gun on him several weeks later, when she'd thought he'd killed Kira. She remembered the pain he felt, how he hated himself at that moment, hated Kira, the war.

Yuna walked in and smiled. "You look beautiful. Though I wish you'd grow your hair longer."

He escorted her out into a limousine. As they drove off, Yuna looked at Cagalli again. "Are you nervous? You haven't said a word."

"I'm fine," Cagalli said, uncomfortable.

"You should smile, then," Yuna told her.

* * *

Murrue, Kira, Steve, and Zero rode the elevator down into the hangar. As Murrue talked with Kira, Zero thought about how he met Alex.

_A bar is not usually the place you'd expect to meet a ZAFT legend. Especially one who was listed as MIA. Zero's armor caused the whole establishment to go silent. He pulled up a seat next to a young man, with brown hair and emerald green eyes. The youth wore a brown jacket and blue jeans._

_"You Alex?" Zero asked._

_"Yup," the boy answered, looking at him. Zero was impressed by that. Most people didn't have the nerve to look at him, as the armor made them afraid, as did the sword on his back. "Big risk coming here."_

_"I could say the same to you," Zero replied. "The famous Blue Blaze, here?" He asked quietly. _

_Alex smirked and looked around._ _"Famous? More like traitorous."_

"_You were let go?"_

_Alex scoffed. "No. Deserted. Last week. Chairman Zala, who happens to be my uncle, by the way, is really pissed because of Junius Seven."_

"_Rightfully so," Zero said. "When I heard, I knew I did the right thing running from my people, too."_

"_Why are they after you?" Alex asked._

"_Let's just say I'm a dirty secret they don't want any light to be shed on," Zero said._

_One of the patrons of the bar walked up to Alex, trying to see his face._

"_Need something?" Alex asked, looking away, digging around in his pocket for his knife._

"_Yeah," the man said, sneering. "Your head on a platter, coordinator scum!"_

_Alex whirled, catching the man's fist with his left hand before pressing a knife to his throat. "I did not come here for trouble," Alex said slowly, standing up._

_Zero looked around, his sensors highlighting all concealed weapons in the room. There were too many for his liking. "That's too bad, kid. Cause trouble just found us."_

"_Coordinator scum!"_

_Alex ducked and punched the man in the crotch as the guns started firing. Zero dove behind the counter, kicking the bartender in the face as the man tried to pull out a shotgun from a hole under the register._

_Zero pulled out a Beretta 92FS and fired back, bullets bouncing off the armor he wore. Three men went down immediately. He looked over at Alex. The kid was being choked from behind, but he wasn't out. He kicked his feet up, slamming them into a man's face. As he came back down, he leaned forward, the man behind him yelling in surprise as he fell in front of him. Alex kicked him in the face hard, breaking his nose._

_Zero's sword came out, his hand expertly spinning it as he swung at another man who pulled out a gun. The blade met no resistance as it cut through his wrist. The attacker screamed as his hand fell to the ground, and Zero grabbed him and pulled before spinning around, smashing his foot into his chest. He dropped like a rag doll, out cold. He spun quickly, the sword hitting another man in the abdomen. Zero slowly pulled it out before flipping it in the air and smashing the handle into his face._

"_Zero! Zero!"_

"Zero!" Kira said, shaking the man. Zero responded by grabbing Kira and smashing him into the wall before pressing his blade against his throat. Kira's eyes widened in surprise. Zero suddenly realized what he'd done.

"I'm sorry, Kira," he said quickly, pulling the blade back. "I-I was…thinking of an old battle…guess I got carried away."

He smacked Kira on the shoulder and walked out of the elevator, clutching his helmet.

"What was that?" Murrue asked.

"I don't know," Kira said softly. "But I hope he's okay."

"Are you sure this is the right thing to do?" Murrue asked Kira.

"There's no other choice," he said, looking at her. "We can't just sit back and watch."

He walked out to the hangar, where the _Ark II _and _Archangel _sat. The _Ark II _was a slightly redesigned _Ark_, with fins on the side and rear to help with maneuverability and speed. It also had several railguns installed on the front now, for added firepower.

"Let's do it," Zero said.

* * *

Yuna grinned and waved at the crowd, pleased with the results. "You should wave, Cagalli."

Cagalli thought about her kiss with Athrun, tears in her eyes. Yuna helped her out of the car, noticing. "I hope those are tears of joy."

* * *

Murrue looked at Andy. "Perhaps you'd like to try out being captain?"

Andy waved his hand. "Nah. Ship's understaffed, and I may have to go out as a pilot."

Kira's mother hugged him. "Make sure you come back."

Kira smiled. "No worries, mom."

Zero followed Kira onto the ship. "I'm sorry for that, Kira."

"It's okay," Kira said. "I know you're under a lot of stress lately."

The Baravar started up again, after two years of inactivity. The machine had also been remade. Now it sported the traditional V-shaped antenna, with two additional spikes on each one jutting out from halfway. Its phase shift was now dirt black color, and also sported the Strike's Sword Striker pack as a permanent armament.

A few minutes later, the three machines launched.

* * *

Another hour passed before the wedding started. Cagalli never thought she'd be doing this. It came as a great relief to her when she heard the next words.

"We have mobile suits incoming! Mobilize!"

Yuna's eyes widened in fear. "What?" He screeched. "Wh-what are you waiting for?!"

People ran in fear as they noticed the dots in the distance. Several Astrays moved in, firing. The Freedom gracefully spun and weaved, dodging the incoming fire. The Falchion pulled out its rifle and fired, the first shot knocking a unit's head right off.

The Baravar fired its new anchor, latching onto a passing Astray. Steve reversed throttle, and the anchor ripped the wing off the unit, sending it into a downward spin. Kira fired his beam rifle, blasting the arms off another unit.

The Freedom headed straight for the temple, landing in front of Cagalli. Behind it, Baravar crashed down hard, firing its weapons. Yuna ran from Cagalli as Freedom's hands closed around her.

"What are you doing, Kira!?" Cagalli yeled up at him. Kira simply smiled and moved Freedom away.

Yuna rushed forward, his face red. "Shoot him down!"

Several Murasames followed the Freedom. Kira opened the cockpit and pulled Cagalli inside.

"I can't believe you did this, after I told-"

"Will you be quiet, Cagalli?!" Kira barked. Seeing Kira be this direct was new to her, and she stayed quiet. "Steve, Zero, you guys there?"

"_Wrapping up now, Yama-sorry, Kira," _Steve broadcast. The Baravar blew the wings off another unit while Falchion kept up a steady stream of fire, breaking the formations up.

"Let's go home," Kira said, blasting past Todaka's fleet, and following the _Archangel _and _Ark II_, which had just launched from beneath the ocean.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Finished. Sorry for the delays. Holidays and all. Hope you liked. I'll update next week. Til then, Hellshadow, signing off.


	15. Return to Battle

The Legacy was right on the Savior's tail as the two machines cut through the clouds, Orb finally appearing below them. Legacy was a deep orange color, the RAW units completely black, with a red shield on the front.

"Orb control, requesting permission to dock with the _Minerva_," Athrun broadcast. He got nothing but static.

"_I've got two contacts. Murasames."_

The Orb mobile suits flew straight for them, and fired once before blowing past Athrun and Five.

"Orb control! Cease fire! I have no intention of attacking!" Athrun said, shocked by their actions.

"_ZAFT is now an enemy of ORB!"_

_What? _Athrun thought. "This is Alex Dino. I request to speak with Cagalli Yula Attha."

"_That's not possible. Furthermore, your excuse for attacking is flimsy, as the _Minerva _is no longer here."_

"_Looks like bad luck, buddy," _Athrun heard Five's voice.

* * *

"I can't believe you two did this!" Cagalli screamed at Kira and Murrue. Murrue cringed at her voice, while Kira didn't even flinch. "Kidnapping me from the ceremony?! Are you insane?!"

Zero and Steve stayed silent, but Cagalli's wrath did not exclude them. "And you two! Why'd you even get involved?!"

"I've got no love for the Alliance," Zero said, leaning against the wall, arms crossed. "I figured you'd know that about me already."

"It couldn't be helped," Kira said softly, leaning on the table. "We couldn't let you something so stupid."

"What's so stupid about trying to save your country?" Cagalli demanded.

"Do you really believe marrying Yuna is the right thing to do?!" Kira asked forcefully.

Cagalli cringed and sank in her chair. "It-it was the only way to keep ORB safe," she whispered, looking down.

"Is keeping Orb safe good enough, when one day ORB could attack the PLANTs, or some other country?" Kira asked her again. "You still have time to change things." He reached into his pocket and placed Athrun's' ring on the table.

* * *

Lunamaria was watching Meyrin as she bought supplies for the ship.

"When do you thing we'll go back into space?" Vino asked Yolant, who simply shrugged. They looked behind them, watching as Djarum pulled two massive carts behind him.

"More importantly, what's he gonna do with all that?" Yolant asked, gesturing towards all the tools in the carts. Djarum headed towards the GM Cannon, which had two massive cargo boxes stacked next to it.

Shinn was in the lounge, looking outside. He was watching the new BABI mobile suit transform and smiled. He looked out at the sky, and his eyes widened as he noticed two machines coming in. "Rey!" Shinn cried, running for the door. Rey followed quickly, not asking.

The Savior and Legacy came in for a landing. The two machines touched down softly, and the pilots exited their units. Shinn recognized Five and shook his head. "What are you doing here?" He asked.

Five sighed as he walked up to him. "Same old Asuka. No respect for the chain of command."

Athrun took his helmet off, and Shinn's eyes widened in surprise as everyone began whispering amongst themselves. The _Minerva _crew saluted instantly.

"What's going on?" Shinn asked rudely. Lunamaria elbowed him hard and Shinn saluted.

"He's FAITH now," she told him.

"Is Captain Gladys on the bridge?" Athrun asked.

Lunamaria smiled and nodded. "I'll escort you there."

"Are you with ZAFT now?" Shinn asked as they walked off.

Athrun turned around and smiled. "I guess I am."

He and Five followed Lunamaria into the elevator. "So, why were you suddenly recalled to ZAFT?" She asked Athrun.

"I was asked to meet with the chairman," Athrun shrugged. "So he could thank me for helping earlier with the battles."

"And because the chairman wanted to know a bit more about me," Five said. Athrun glared at him.

Lunamaria looked at the warrior. "Anything you can share?" She asked, smiling.

Fie shook his head. "Sorry, Miss Hawke. Classified information. I'd have to kill you if I told you."

Lunamaria smiled. She knew he was joking, but she had no doubt he _could _kill her if he needed to.

"Oh, when did the _Minerva _leave ORB?" Athrun asked. "I hadn't heard anything about it."

Lunamaria shook her head in disgust. "We were ambushed by the Alliance as soon as we left ORB," she explained. "The ORB military even blocked the border from us so we couldn't involve them."

Five looked at Athrun. "Please tell Athrun everything. I have to be somewhere else right now."

He walked off, and after going down several corridors, he used his HUD to contact CABAL.

contact. need immediate information. query as follows: orb. attack.

The screen in front of him suddenly disappeared and CABAL's face appeared.

Five pulled his arm up and the armor on the lower arm slid open, revealing a communication panel. He hit the center button twice and another message appeared.

voice dampener enabled.

"CABAL, what's this about an attack?"

"ZAFT special operations branch attacked the residency where Kira Yamato and the remaining members of Alex's group were staying. The new prototype ASH units were used in the attack. Zero and Kira Yamato managed to repel the attack," the AI informed him. Five grimaced and deactivated the voice dampener.

"-f Shinn hadn't done so well in battle," Lunamaria finished. "I'm disappointed in Miss Attha marrying Yuna Roma Seiran," she said.

"I can't believe it," Athrun said.

"There's also a rumor about Miss Cagalli being kidnapped."

"Kidnapped?" Five asked.

* * *

Athrun and Five met with Talia several minutes later. Athrun handed over the transfer papers from Durandal to her.

"It appears I'm now a member of FAITH," Talia said. "And I'm to proceed to Gibraltar with a submarine escort. We're to capture Eurasia's Suez base. Many parts of the Eurasian Federation aren't too happy being part of the Alliance."

"What happened in ORB?" Athrun asked.

"Rumors indicate that the chief representative was kidnapped by the Freedom," she told him.

Athrun was stunned. _Kira? Why?_

"The other machine was there, as well. The Baravar, I believe it was called."

_Zero? Why were you there?_

In the hangar, Vino and Yolant were talking to each other about recent news.

"I don't see what the big deal is about being part of FAITH," Vino said.

"FAITH is ZAFT's top elites. And they only answer to the Supreme Council or Durandal," Yolant explained.

Lunamaria was following Athrun, and he'd noticed. "Did you need something?" He asked, surprising her. She shook it off and climbed up on the Savior after him.

"Is it similar to the Impulse or Chaos?" She asked him, referring to the cockpit design.

Athrun smiled. "Why don't you find out for yourself?" He asked, getting out of the chair. Shinn looked up at them for a moment before walking off.

On the bridge, the crew got ready to leave.

"Prepare the ship for launch," Talia ordered.

* * *

Stellar sat on the deck of the _John Paul Jones_, staring out at the sea. Two soldiers came up and noticed her.

"Hey," one said, grinning. "Now what's a pretty thing like you doing out here?"

Stellar continued to stare out. "The sea," she whispered.

"What?"

"I like to look at it," she answered.

"Stop it, will you?" His partner said. "She's from-"

"You're weird," the man told her. "Why don't you come with me for a while?" He asked. He leaned down and began pulling her up. Auel came up and saw the two troopers. He grinned and ran forward, knocking the first one down before grabbing the other one by the throat and pressing a pistol to his back.

"You better stop it," Auel said, sneering. "We're from the 81st Independent Mobile Unit. She might look dazed right now, but she's scary when she's pissed off."

Stella kept looking out while the men ran off, Auel holstering the pistol. "Are you just going to sit there?" He asked her, walking off. "Neo's calling us."

Stellar was up immediately, a smile on her face. She followed Auel quickly.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Done. On time. Let me know what you think. Hellshadow, signing off.


	16. Ocean Struggle

"I don't see what's so hard to understand about all this," Neo said into the speaker. "I want all of our Windams to attack the _Minerva, Nyiragongo, _and _Zacynthus._"

"_I'm afraid I must object, commander. Construction of our base hasn't been finished yet."_

Neo gritted his teeth. "Then consider this a direct order. I'll leave the Gaia behind to guard the base."

He hung up and sighed. _Stellar won't like this, _he though as he walked out. Sting, Auel, and Stellar were waiting outside. "Sting, Auel, prepare to launch."

The two immediately ran towards the hangar as Stellar just looked at Neo. He smiled and put a hand on her shoulder. "Sorry to do this, Stellar, but you're going to have to stay behind."

Stellar's eyes widened and she shook her head. He smiled again and walked away.

At the Alliance base, hundreds of enslaved workers watched as countless Windams took to the sky. The sight did nothing to help their spirits, though. The Chaos launched behind them, beam rifle in hand. The Abyss and Neo's Windam followed right on its heels.

_I hope I can finish my fight with that guy, _Neo thought about Rey.

* * *

"30 Windams closing in on us, ma'am!" An officer notified Talia. "And also…The Chaos!"

"Battle alert!" Talia ordered, the bridge descending into combat mode. "Tell Shinn to launch with Lunamaria. Have Rey on standby!"

Athrun entered the bridge and saluted. "I'll launch, as well, captain. So will Five."

"What about the other one?" Arthur asked.

"I'm afraid Thirteen won't be able to go out there, captain. His side effects have gotten worse."

Talia sighed. She'd looked over their files, and she knew what he was talking about. "I guess there's no choice. I want you to command the mobile suit forces, then."

Athrun was surprised, but shook it off. "Yes, ma'am."

The Legacy launched first, its bright yellow phase shift reflecting a bit too much for Athrun's eyes. He had to adjust his display several times because of it. Shinn launched next, the Impulse ready for battle.

As the mobile suits got closer to their target, the Chaos came in from above, firing at the Savior. Athrun swore and transformed, firing his plasma cannons right back. The Impulse was firing at every Windam that got in his way, dispatching most with a single shot.

_This is all they can do? _Shinn thought as he easily avoided several beams fired at him.

The Legacy and Savior flew next to each other, both in mobile armor mode. Five fired the RAWs, blasting a Windam into oblivion, smoke pouring in every direction. The Chaos came up behind them and fired its beam rifle, nearly hitting the Savior's left wing.

"Good luck, Athrun," Five said, banking left.

Athrun looked at the mobile suit quickly, understanding the situation. Five wasn't abandoning him. He was going to help Shinn with the Windams.

"Surround the Impulse and converge," Neo ordered. He smiled as he watched the Impulse fire wildly at the numerous mobile suits coming in.

"_Don't get too comfortable."_

Neo turned his head quickly, surprised. The Legacy rushed in with its beam saber, swinging hard. The Windam flew to the side, barely avoiding in time, but the Legacy quickly whirled, firing its beam rifle as it began a return run. Neo grimaced. _He's no amateur._

_

* * *

_

"_Shinn, you're too far out!" _

Shinn scoffed angrily as he heard Athrun. "You think?"

Talia contacted the _Zacynthus. _"Do we know the Windams came from?"

"_Djarum's working on it now. We haven't picked anything up, though. We'll let you know as soon as we get something."_

"_Hey, we just picked up the Abyss. It's in the water!"_

* * *

"Lunamaria, Rey, launch for underwater combat!" Talia ordered.

The _Zacynthus _aimed its canons down at the water and fired. Djarum looked at Mazer. "You do know that energy weapons are useless underwater."

"I'm hopin' it scares 'em," Mazer replied. "So keep it up."

Several GOOhNs launched from the _Nyiragongo_, heading for the Abyss, which was now in its mobile armor mode. The units fired their torpedoes, but the stolen G-unit evaded and swam around the ZAFT machines.

Above, Rey and Lunamaria's ZAKUs fearlessly dove into the sea, equipped with bazookas.

Shinn shot down another Windam. Neo pulled his unit back, looking at the Impulse. _He's gotten a lot better._

The Legacy flew in front of him, firing again. Neo nearly lost it as the mobile suit slammed him from the side. "And this guy isn't letting up, either!"

The Windam pulled away, heading for the surface. The Legacy and Impulse followed quickly, Shinn not ready to give up the fight. Five looked at his scanners and pulled up. "Shinn, pull up!"

"_What are you talki-"_

The Gaia leapt out from the side, slamming into the Impulse. The Legacy kept following the Windam, though. _Kid's gotta learn to listen._

"Athrun, Asuka's fighting Gaia."

* * *

"_Shinn, you're falling into a trap!" _Athrun warned Shinn.

"Shut up," Shinn replied. The Impulse rushed forward, slashing at the Gaia with its beam saber.

The Chaos and Windam opened fire on Athrun as the Legacy tried to interfere. The Gaia pulled back, and Shinn noticed the unfinished camp. He zoomed in, noticing the workers being rounded up.

He watched as the soldiers began gunning down civilians who managed to escape from a hole in the fence. Shinn felt a white hot rage, remembering the day he lost his family.

The Impulse took several steps forward, firing its CIWS wildly, shredding tanks and antiaircraft turrets. The soldiers began running as the mobile suit aimed its beam rifle at the buildings, leveling them one by one.

The Abyss came up to the _Nyiragongo __and fired all its weapons. The underwater vessel was rocked hard and broke in two before exploding._

_"We just lost the __Nyiragongo!"_

"Shinn, pull back! Those soldiers no longer pose a threat!" Athrun broadcast. The Impulse simply knelt on the ground and ripped a fence out of the ground. Five just watched in silence.

* * *

Shinn groaned as Athrun slapped him across the face. "I didn't do anything wrong!" Shinn yelled. "I saved those people!"

Athrun hit him again, and Five stood beside him, arms crossed. "War isn't about being a hero," Athrun told him harshly.

"The battle was still going on, Asuka," Five explained. "If those people had walked out a bit further, they might have been killed."

"Don't make decisions on your own until you know how to use your power," Athrun said, walking away.

Five caught up to him. "He made the right choice."

"He disobeyed orders," Athrun said. Five looked at him.

"So did you, several times in the past. And he saved those people. You telling me that means nothing in war?" Five walked away before Athrun could answer.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Sorry for the late chapter. Next one up in a week. Hellshadow


	17. Life of a Soldier

The _Ark _sat at the bottom of Scandinavian waters alongside the _Archangel_, as the other ship fired a buoy. Once the buoy got to the surface, it began receiving news broadcasts worldwide.

"Plenty of news about Eurasia, but nothing on ZAFT," Andrew Bartfeld said, sighing. "I wish it was more uplifting."

"Well, a dolphin gave birth recently," Murrue said, walking onto the bridge with a smile.

Andrew smirked and looked at the screen as Meer Campbell came on screen, singing one of Lacus' songs again.

"I'd really love to wipe her smile off with my sword," Zero said, startling everyone. He stood by the back wall, arms crossed. "It's disgraceful."

"I'm inclined to agree with you, Zero, but we can't give away our position without more information," Andy replied, looking at him and shrugging.

"I think Durandal did well. He acted with restraint when the war began," Murrue said. "Honestly, I wouldn't mind aligning with ZAFT."

"I don't think that's right."

Everyone looked at Kira Yamato, and Zero took a step to the side. _He's getting good at sneaking up. I didn't even realize he was there._

"First, there's an assassination attempt on Lacus, and now there's an imposter?" Kira asked. "I can't trust him," he said, shaking his head.

"Athrun believes in him," Cagalli said, getting out of her chair.

* * *

While the _Minerva _docked at the Mahamul Base, Vino and Yolant were talking to each other about Lacus' recent concert.

"She sings much better now," Yolant said.

"And then there's the more veiling dresses, too," Vino said with a grin.

"I need the Savior's maintenance log," a voice said from behind them. The two instantly got up, startled to see Athrun.

"Uh, sure!" Yolant said with a sheepish grin, handing him the data sheet.

Athrun thanked them and walked away.

"Guy's lucky to have Lacus Clyne as his fiancée," Yolant said. "Wanna unplug Savior's cables?" He asked with a smile.

"Just so you know, I heard everything you two were talking about!" Athrun shouted to them. Their faces turned red with embarrassment instantly.

Across the hangar, Shinn glared at Athrun. Lunamaria looked at him, worried. "Stop staring at Athrun and just talk to him," she said, noticing that Five just entered the hangar. He looked at the two of them for several seconds, and Luna shifted, nervous. "Shinn, please."

Athrun and Five followed Captain Gladys to meet the base commander. Five's audio equipment picked up the whispers easily. He smiled inside the suit as the men around them talked amongst themselves about the appearance of Athrun Zala himself.

Shinn was heading down a corridor, followed by Rey and Luna.

"I know you're angry because Athrun left ZAFT, and now he's back as a FAITH member, and your superior," Lunamaria said. "But you're acting like a child, Shinn!"

Shinn whirled, glaring at her. "You're annoying," he said, and walked away, not caring about how badly his words struck her.

* * *

In the conference room, Five grimaced as he heard about the situation.

"We can't recklessly attack the Suez. The best way would be to do an orbital drop."

"The council won't approve that," Five said.

"That's because of the Chairman's declaration that ZAFT has no territorial ambitions on Earth," Talia said.

"Yes, but if let the Alliance do as they wish now, it will create problems later," Commander Ruddle said. "The Alliance is currently in the Suez area and would like to be able to attack our bases in Mahamul and Gibraltar. Luckily, they can't due to rebel attacks and a thinning supply line."

Athrun took a look a map on the table. "If we cut off the base, we can move in and take it out."

"Yes, that was our assessment, as well," Ruddle said, sighing. "But the Alliance foresaw that possibility. The path to Suez runs through a ravine, and it's guarded by a mobile armor, the Gells-Ghe. There's also a Lohengrin cannon positioned there, as well. We did send an attack force before, but that damned cannon wiped it out."

He looked at Talia and smiled. "But I think things will work out differently this time if the _Minerva _joins in the next attack."

* * *

Some time later, Shinn found himself on the observation deck. Athrun walked up to him, hands in his pockets.

"Is it okay for you to be outside?" Shinn asked.

Athrun smiled. "You can't hold a conversation without starting a fight. Does it really bother you that much that I came back? Well, you must view it as unreasonable, I guess."

"It is unreasonable."

Athrun stared at him. "What happened to your family?"

"They were murdered by the Attha family," Shinn spat.

Athrun thought about the deaths he had to live with, his mother, Rusty, Miguel, Nicol. "Everyone who has cried and felt weak wishes for power, Shinn. Power to make a difference. But what you have to remember that when you have that power, you're making someone else cry."

"If you forget that, you'll just be a destroyer. But if you can remember that, then you're not an idiot, but a truly formidable pilot."

Shinn looked at him in surprise.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Done. Sorry for the lateness.


	18. Sabotaging the Lohengrin

James sighed as the _Zacynthus _finally entered the Gulnahan ravine right behind the _Minerva._ Djarum zoomed in on image and showed it to James. "Well, well, well. Looks like _Minerva'_s got a visitor."

"Want me to get over there?" Angela asked.

James shook his head. "No, thanks. You're the best pilot we've got. And Djarum can't go, either."

Djarum turned around. "Why not? I've got nothin' going on."

James looked at him. "Do you want to go?"

Djarum snorted. "Of course not. It's the principle that counts."

James smirked. "Five and Thirteen can record the conversation, anyway, with the tech they've got."

"And I still haven't gotten a single peek," Djarum whined.

"Oh, shut up," Angela said. "The way you work, you'd probably mass produce it without permission."

James chuckled, and Djarum simply shrugged.

* * *

Shinn entered the briefing room, noticing the new arrival, as well as Five and Thirteen standing by the wall, both their arms crossed. The two looked like identical statues. _Weird, _he thought.

Lunamaria looked at him as he came to stand by her. "We working with the local resistance group?"

Arthur entered the room, and everyone saluted, except for Five and Thirteen, who simply nodded. Athrun followed, and behind him was a young girl. "Briefing room, Shinn, Lunamaria." He looked at the two armored men. "Guys."

Five headed for the door immediately. Thirteen nodded and followed, lightly smacking Athrun in the shoulder.

Shinn frowned. "How come they don't get a reprimand for that?"

"Because I fought against them in the last war, Shinn. And then I fought alongside them, after they helped me," Athrun explained. "And because we show each other proper respect."

The last comment made Shinn go red in the face, but he stalked out of the room without a word. Lunamaria came up to Athrun as he ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know what I'm gonna do with him."

Lunamaria smiled. "Well, you just deflated his ego a little bit. That's something."

The two headed for the briefing room. As they entered, Shinn noticed that Five and Thirteen were already inside, by the back wall, again standing the same way they were before. _Definitely weird. _He looked at the front, and noticed Athrun and Arthur standing next to a young girl.

"That's our informant? A kid?" Shinn asked, frowning. The guest looked at him and frowned, as if she heard him.

Arthur stepped forward. "The Ruddle group has been unable to take out the base."

"This is a layout of the surrounding area," Athrun said, a screen coming on with an overhead view of the region. There's a city past the bluff, and a munitions plant is situated right behind that. Our only approach can be from the south, but there's a problem with that, as well. The enemy has a positron cannon place on a hill top here," he moved the cursor over the area. "It covers the entire canyon. Even if we were to destroy the cannon or the rocks surrounding it with long range attacks, they've got a mobile armor with positron deflector technology, as well as mobile suits. We don't expect to wound them horribly. Shinn, Lunamaria, Rey. I hear you went up against a mobile armor off the coast of Orb," he finished, looking at them.

"Yeah," Shinn said smugly. "So all we need to do is kick that thing's ass, destroy the cannon, and get into Gulnahan, right?"

The young girl glared at him, and Five shifted slightly. _He talks like that to Zala again, he's gonna be missing limbs._

"Well, yes," Athrun said. "But we're discussing _how _to do all that."

Shinn leaned back and closed his eyes. "I can do it. If I feel like it."

"So you'll do it? We'll just sit back and watch," Athrun said. "Just let us know when you're done."

Shinn almost fell out of his seat, an expression of horror on his face. "Well, I, I-" he stammered.

Thirteen nodded, silently applauding Athrun. _That'll teach Asuka to be cocky._

"All foolishness aside, Miss Connille," Athrun said, looking at the girl.

"Right," she replied, pulling a disc out of her pocket.

"He's the pilot," Athrun finished, pointing at Shinn. "Please hand the data over to him."

Connille was shocked and outraged. "Him?! Isn't the success of this operation supposed to depend on the pilot? Will it be ok with a guy like him?"

Shinn leapt to his feet. "What'd you say?"

Five pulled out a small tranquilizer, ready to use it on Shinn, but Thirteen grabbed his arm and shook his head.

"Aren't you the one who should be doing this?" Connille asked, looking at Athrun. "If we fail, everyone in the town will be killed!" She glared at Shinn.

"What was that, brat?" Shinn spat, earning a glare from Athrun.

"Athrun. Hadn't thought of that," Arthur muttered.

Athrun pointed at the seat. "Sit down, Shinn. Now." He looked at Connille. "He can do this, I assure you."

Connille handed the disc to Athrun. He nodded his thanks and walked up to Shinn.

"Why don't you do this yourself, like she said?" Shinn asked. Athrun frowned. "You probably think you can do better job, anyway, right?"

Five cocked his head to the side. _Not entirely wrong._

"Shinn, stop whining!" Athrun yelled, surprising everyone. "If I'd thought the mission was impossible, I'd be doing this myself. But I thought you could pull it off. All that boasting, and now you back off?"

Shinn stood up and snatched the disc away from Athrun.

"_All hands, standby! Vice Captain Trine, to bridge immediately."_

Arthur immediately bolted for the door, cursing. Shinn looked at Connille, noticing her glare. "What? Got something to say?"

Connille looked down. "Last time the cannon was attacked, the town suffered. It triggered a resistance movement in the city. Those who defied the Alliance went through hell for it. Many were even killed. So make sure that cannon is destroyed this time!"

Athrun walked her out of the room as she stared sobbing.

Lunamaria followed, catching up at the elevator. "As expected. Shinn's hard to deal with, huh?" She asked Athrun. "He's always been like that, though. In the academy, he was always arguing with his instructors. But you did real well, getting him to listen to you!"

"I'm not trying to use him," Athrun said. "He's just clumsy with people. I'm not too good with people, myself."

He stepped into the elevator and the door closed.

* * *

"We've reached point B! Time for the operation!" Joachim said. "Contact the _Bergli, Zacynthus, _and _Minerva_. Prepare the mobile suits for launch."

On the _Minerva, _Shinn jumped into the Core Splendor.

"_Central catapult, online. Shutter, closed. Catapult, moving to launch position. Core Splendor, all systems online."_

"Close off the bridge. Prepare for anti-mobile suit battle," Talia ordered. "After we launch Impulse, move out in front of _Desmond _and _Bergli._"

"CIWS, Tristan, Isolde, activated," Arthur announced. "Launchers One, Seven, Ports One through Five, loaded with Parsifal."

In the hangar, the Savior was loaded onto the catapult. On the _Zacynthus, _the third prototype was loaded onto the launch pad. Djarum rubbed his hands together, grinning. "Finally ready to be launched. Wait, which model is this?" He asked, looking at Daurio.

James shook his head. "The next GM unit. Rather, its successor. The Jegan."

Djarum activated the hangar camera, looking the unit over. It was an aqua marine color, with rocket thrusters and two additional thrusters above its back for maneuverability, and two more built into the shoulder panels, as well. "Wait a second," he said, looking at Mazer. "Who's gonna fly it?"

Mazer looked at him before his face scrunched up in pain. "Damn it, I forgot those armored dweebs are on the _Minerva._ "You've got the bridge."

"Wait, _you're_ gonna fly it?" Djarum asked.

"You got a problem with that?" James asked, glaring at him.

"No, not at all," Djarum said quickly.

"Then get to work," James told him as he walked off the bridge. Djarum watched as the Core Splendor launched, followed by the Chest Flyer and Leg Flyer.

* * *

"Count: One ZAFT Lesseps Class battleship, one Petrie class, also a _Nazca _class, and…A Girty Lue class!"

The last ship made the room go quiet for a second.

"Where'd they get one?" Someone asked.

"I heard James Daurio is alive, and that he's the pilot," another replied in a whisper.

"Looks like ZAFT still hasn't learned its lesson. This won't change anything, even if they bring in some new ships," the commander said. "Activate the Lohengrin! Launch the Gells-Ghe!"

Athrun and Rey launched in their units, with James in the new KIP Jegan unit. Shinn banked hard in the canyon, making a tight turn that the Chest Flyer barely followed him on, scraping the side. He remembered the conversation he had before launching.

"_There's a cavern around here that even most locals aren't aware of. It's not that wide, so a mobile suit would have difficulty going through. But the cavern runs right under the cannon, and even if the exit's blocked, you can blow it open with the slightest explosion."_

Shinn looked ahead, noticing an opening in the rock wall, water flowing through it. "That's gotta be it," he muttered. As soon as he entered, he nearly had a panic attack. The cavern was pitch black. He couldn't see anything. "Is the data the only thing I can use?"

He looked at the screen below, trying to make sure he didn't hit what the computer said was the walls. Shinn cursed as a gush of water hit the Core Splendor, nearly making him lose control.

"_Shinn, we'll distract the mobile armors and cannon while you go through the canyon."_

"Athrun wanted me to do this?!" Shinn screamed as the Splendor nicked the wall. "He probably didn't want to do it himself, the bastard!"

Outside, the Savior launched, activating its phase shift. Rey's ZAKU followed, with Rey's unit flying alongside. The land battleships launched their BuCUEs directly beneath the _Minerva._ The Jegan launched and swooped low to the ground, just behind the BuCUEs.

"Increase altitude. Activate the Tannhauser," Talia ordered. "Be considerate of what's behind our target when aiming. Don't blast the town."

The _Minerva _slowly lifted off the ground. The Tannhauser was activated.

In front of them, the crew of the Gells-Ghe prepared. "Move out in front and activate the deflector," the commander said, seated in the top chair. The massive hybrid moved ahead of the mobile suits and activated the shield. The beam struck it with such force that a dust cloud blasted through the canyon, obscuring everything. The water churned and splashed from the force, and even the ships were knocked off course. The _Zacynthus _dipped low, scraping the ground as the BuCUEs were blown away.

"Move in!" Athrun said. "We have to clear the mobile suits out as fast as possible."

The ZAKUs rushed in. The Lohengrin cannon moved into position, targeting the _Minerva_, which was closing in rapidly.

"We're in their crosshairs, captain!" Arthur notified Talia.

"Engines at maximum! Descend and evade!" She ordered. The weapon fired, the beam passing above the _Minerva. _

The Gells-Ghe began retreating as alied mobile suit took its place.

"Damn! Lunamaria, get it!" Rey yelled, blanketed by enemy fire. The Savior dove beneath a swarm of rockets and fired several shots, destroying them.

Shinn was finally reaching the checkpoint. He fired every rocket he had, blasting a hole right next to the Gells-Ghe, stunning the pilots. The Core Splendor exited and formed up with the other components, activating the Impulse. The Gells-Ghe turned around and opened fire on the mobile suit.

James rushed in with the Jegan, rushing in with a beam saber from below, and cutting off its right arm. The Impulse landed below the cannon, blasting the surrounding gun turrets with precision shots.

Athrun's Savior fell to the ground, firing a single shot that knocked the Gells-Ghe's head off. The Impulse leapt up, and a stray shot blew its beam rifle away. Shinn thumbed the trigger twice, pulling out the anti-razor knives. The ZAFT unit's arm shot forward, embedding the blade in a Dagger L's chest.

Shinn looked at the cannon being lowered into the base. "Not this time!" He yelled. He picked up the lifeless Dagger and threw it at the bay door before firing his CIWS. The Dagger fell inside and crashed into the cannon as its reactor went critical. The mountainside rumbled and began collapsing as the base within collapsed.

In the town, the people were finally rebelling. The Alliance troops tried to escape, but some soldiers were left behind by their own comrades. Athrun watched as the people celebrated, but he immediately lost joy as he watched several captured soldiers get shot in cold blood.

"_Nice work, kid," _James said through the comm. _"We'll let the Ruddle team do the rest."_

Athrun sighed and exited the cockpit. He walked through the crowd to Shinn.

"You get lost?" Shinn asked, smiling. "The operation was a success, right?"

Athrun looked at the people around him. "Yeah, it was. Nice work, Shinn. It was thanks to your abilities."

"But I almost died," Shinn said, crossing his arms. "You never said the visibility in the caves would be so bad."

"Really?" Athrun asked. "I said you'd only be able to rely on the data."

"And you pulled through alright," James said, walking up to them.

"Aren't you the captain of the-" Shinn started.

"James Daurio," he said. He held out his hand. "Sorry for the rough talks we've had."

Shinn shook his hand.

"Well, then we should be getting back," Athrun said. "Come on, Shinn."

The three began the walk to their respective ships.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Late, I know. Had some stuff recently that conflicted with scheduling. Hope you liked it. Next one should be up around Monday. Hellshadow


	19. Concealed Truth

The _Minerva _docked at the ZAFT base in Diocuia while the _Zacynthus _flew overhead, settling into a defensive flight route. Talia and Arthur exited the ship as a small shuttle launched from _Zacynthus_, carrying James and Thirteen.

"Any idea what all the commotion is about?" Talia asked Arthur, who simply shook his head.

"I'm afraid not," he replied. "It's been a while since I visited a place like this."

Athrun was just coming down the ramp when he and Five spotted it. A pink ZAKU Warrior was being brought down by two other units, a DINN and a GOUF Ignited. The ZAKU unit had the word "love" written over the chest plate, and had a red heart on the right shoulder plate, while the left one had a dark red Haro painted on. Five shook his head as he heard the men start shouting in joy as "Lacus Clyne" waved to them.

"This is just disgraceful," Five said to Athrun.

Athrun smiled sheepishly. "I'm not too pleased with it, either, but it's good for morale."

Five scoffed. "Morale? They can look at a magazine picture and have the same response."

Athrun suddenly grew a bit sick as she started singing one of the _real _Lacus Clyne's songs with an upbeat tune. He didn't realize that Lunamaria was behind him, so when she spoke up, he jumped.

"Did you know she was coming?" Lunamaria asked.

Athrun groaned and ran a hand through his hair as Five looked at him. "No, I didn't. But I think I should have."

A technician walked past him, bumping into Meyrin. She fell against Athrun and grabbed him by the arm, smirking. Five couldn't help but shake his head in amusement as Athrun went red in the face.

Not too far away, Miriallia Haww watched the concert and took pictures as best as she could.

An hour after that, Meer waved to the crowd. "I would like to give my thanks to the ZAFT soldiers who continue to work towards peace!"

A small jeep drove past the concert. Auel looked at the soldiers gathered from the back seat. "Well, they look like they're having fun. Are we going to attack _Minerva _or not?"

"That's Neo's plan," Sting said. "But that's not our problem."

Auel looked at him.

"Our only concern is whether we kill them or the other way around," Sting told him.

Stellar looked at the sea, a smile appearing on her face.

* * *

At a government building, Talia and Rey were surprised to find Durandal out on the deck.

"To think you'd be at a place like this," Talia said.

Gilbert laughed and turned around. "Did I surprise you?"

"Well, you certainly stunned me," Talia said, saluting. Rey did the same.

Gilbert looked at him. "You seem to be doing well. I've heard of your accomplishments. You've done well."

Rey was overjoyed by the praise.

"It's been a while since we've been able to meet like this," Gilbert said.

Rey rushed forward and hugged Durandal, who returned the embrace. Once they had settled down at the table, Talia spoke. "So what's this all about? Has the Federation begun movements? You wouldn't be out this far if they didn't."

"Excuse me."

Gilbert turned his head, noticing the young man with orange blonde hair in a red coat. "These are the pilots you requested to see, sir."

Gilbert stood and smiled. "It's been a while, Athrun."

He walked up to them and held his hand out to Athrun. Athrun was surprised, but took it. "Yes, it has."

He looked at Lunamaria. "I'm sorry, I forgot your name."

Lunamaria smiled and shook her head. "No, it's not a problem. I'm Lunamaria Hawke."

Shinn stuttered. "Sh-Shinn Asuka."

Durandal smiled. "I remember you quite well. As a matter of fact, I've heard you've done remarkably well for yourself."

Shinn was stunned.

"There's even a motion for decorating you," he continued. "The vote should be made soon."

Athrun looked at Shinn, surprised by the news.

"Thank you, sir," Shinn said, shaking his hand.

"So, I hear you did a nice job with the Lohengrin incident," Durandal said, sitting down.

"Oh, no, it was nothing like that," Shinn said, taking a seat in front.

"Despite Armory One being your first battle, you've come a long way."

"That was all Commander Zala's strategy," Shinn said, blushing. Athrun was surprised by his words. "I was just following his orders."

"The town was also liberated thanks to your actions," Durandal said, now looking at them all. "But regardless, the world is in a complex situation right now."

"How are things in space?" Talia asked.

Durandal set the cup of coffee he held down. "Nothing has changed. Occasionally we have small scale battles, but that's about all. I have no idea how things are progressing here on Earth."

"Are there no motions to end the war?" Talia asked, concerned.

Durandal looked at her and shook his head. "Unfortunately, no. The Alliance isn't backing down. Although I don't want to be in a war, there's nothing we can do. That might not be something to talk about with soldiers, finding a way to end this without fighting is difficult."

He crossed his fingers together and looked at the pilots in front of him. "Your opinions are valuable to me. I had you come here because I wanted to hear them."

"Trying to end a war peacefully is good," Shinn said. "But like you said, it can't be helped when there's an enemy threat. You need to fight when there is a need to. Or else you won't be able to protect yourself. We're obligated to protect those who are living peaceful lives."

Athrun looked at Durandal then. "But if you believe that, and kill because some was killed, will that really bring peace?" He asked. "I was once asked that question, and couldn't answer then. Now I'm on the battlefield again, and I still don't have the answer."

"That's where the problem lies," Durandal agreed. "Why hasn't humanity been able to rid itself of war? What are your thoughts, Shinn?"

Shinn was once again surprised. "In any era, there are always idiots like Blue Cosmos and the Federation. Right?"

"Yes," Durandal said, turning around. "In a sense. You want what people have. You hate them, fear them, you think they're wrong. It's true than mankind has fought for these reasons. But there's an even more pointless side to wars. Take the new Gouf Ignited, for example. It just rolled out last month."

They looked at the bright orange unit

"New units like this are produced, one after another. On the field, missiles are fired and suits are destroyed. And so the factories create unit after unit, make new missiles, and send them to the battlefield. This applies to both sides. The production lines are in high demand, and the manufacturing can't keep up. If this were to be an industry, it would be as efficient as it would be profitable."

"But that's-"

Shinn was cut off by the chairman. "Yes. As long as war exists, such things will be obvious. But it's human nature to think the opposite when you learn it's profitable."

"Opposite?"

Durandal nodded. "Once wars are over, weapons are no longer needed. But if a war starts again, profit returns. For people like that, isn't war something they want us to keep going through with?"

"But that's-"

"In the history of humanity, there have always been cries of retaliation to start wars and use it for commerce. For their own profits. Logos is undoubtedly behind this war, as well. After all, they're the base of Blue Cosmos."

Shinn was stunned by that piece of news. As was everyone else. Athrun couldn't believe it.

"And that's where the trouble truly lies," Durandal explained. "As long as Logos exists, the PLANTs and the Earth Alliance will continue to fight. If possible, I would like to do something about that."

Down below, a car quickly parked, and Meer Campbell rushed out. Above, Lunamaria asked if it was alright to rest at a place like this.

"Of course," Talia said. "You've all worked hard and deserve a break."

"Shinn, Lunamaria, you should listen," Athrun said. "I'll stay on the ship."

"Unnecessary," Rey said. "I'll return. You should stay here and enjoy some peace."

Meer rushed up to them, stunning Athrun again. Durandal smiled. "Thank you for your hard work, Miss Clyne."

"I came as soon as I heard you were back!" She said, running to Athrun, nearly knocking Lunamaria over when she did. "Did you see me performance today?"

"Well, yeah," Athrun said, flustered.

"How was it?" She asked him.

Lunamaria looked away, disgusted by "Lacus".

Durandal looked at Meer. "I just told them to stay tonight. You should dine together for once."

Athrun's face turned white, while Meer smiled in joy. "I'm so glad to hear that!"

"Before you go, can I speak to you, Athrun?" Durandal asked.

The two soon stood alone in the courtyard. "This is about the _Archangel_ and _Ark_. You heard, right?"

"Yes."

"The location of that ship after leaving Orb," Durandal said, I thought you might know."

"Sorry," Athrun said. "I've thought about it, but I don't know, either. I was going to ask you about it, actually."

"I see," Durandal said. "I figured if it and the Freedom left Orb, maybe the real Lacus Clyne might be with them."

"I don't think there's any doubt about that," Athrun agreed. "If the ship is departing, they wouldn't leave Lacus behind."

"Considering the situation, I've been searching for it, hoping to ask Lacus to return to the PLANTs," the chairman explained. "I'm sorry. But if that ship contacts you sometime, will you please let me know?"

Athrun nodded. "Yes, I understand."

As Durandal walked away, Athrun wondered if he'd be able to find them.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Done. Sorry for being late. Not my best chapter, once again.


	20. Eyes that Wander

James followed Lunamaria to Athrun's room, thinking about recent events. He fiddled with the collar on his shirt. He'd opted not to wear his ZAFT uniform today because he'd gotten tired of wearing it. It reminded him too much of his time training with Alex years ago.

He looked up as Lunamaria knocked on Athrun's door. "Athrun, we're going to get breakfast, wanna join us?"

The door opened, and James was shocked to see Meer. Behind her, he saw Athrun hurriedly put his pants on.

_Athrun are you serious? _James thought, shaking his head. He didn't say anything, though. As much as he disliked the idea of a false Lacus messing things up, he couldn't interfere in this matter. _Not yet, anyway._

Meer looked at Lunamaria coldly. "Athrun will be down later." Without even a thank you or goodbye, she slammed the door. Lunamaria looked at James.

"Is she always like this?" She asked.

James shrugged. "I think being away from Athrun so often makes her a bit clingy in times like these," he said. "They'll be down in a bit. Shall we?" He led Lunamaria down the hallway.

Back in the room, Athrun glared at Meer. "What are you doing here?"

Meer was surprised. "Isn't that what fiancés do."

"Lacus would never come in without asking," Athrun told her.

The two started arguing.

* * *

Lunamaria smiled at Shinn. "You must feel lucky to have been praised by the chairman yesterday," she teased.

James nodded, looking at Shinn. "Or maybe embarrassed," he added, chuckling.

Shinn just shook his head. "Give it a rest, will you?"

James laughed.

Heine saw Athrun and Meer walk up to them. He saluted quickly and looked at Meer. "That was a great concert yesterday, Miss Clyne."

An aide walked up to Meer and whispered something to her. Meer smiled. "Thank you, mister Westenfluss. But I'm afraid I must leave." She said her goodbyes and elft.

Athrun sighed in relief. Heine looked at him. "Something wrong?"

Athrun stammered for a few seconds, until James swung an arm around his shoulders. "He doesn't see her that often, so when it happens, he's a nervous wreck," he explained with a smirk.

Heine laughed at that, shaking his head. "A bit surprising." He looked at the _Minerva _and _Zacynthus_, which was flying above them. "Your ships are impressive. As are your mobile suits. Tell me, Commander Daurio, how did you get those specialized units you have?"

James rubbed his hands together and looked at his ship. " Well, we're kind of the special ops branch. And, of course, special ops means special equipment. We designed the GM series ourselves, trying to create a unique set of mobile suits that could function effectively as a team."

"Don't we already have those?" Heine asked.

James tilted his head to the side quickly. "Somewhat. Traditional ZAFT squads are made up of one type of mobile suit. DINNs or ZAKUs. Ours are a mixture of various GM units. The GM Cannon was our second unit. The GM Kai was the first. And the Jegan is our crown jewel. So far, at least. The Jegan is the most well rounded unit we've devised."

Heine shook his head. "I wonder why the chairman assigned me to the _Minerva _when it already has three members of FAITH and the _Zacynthus. _Either way, the chairman has high expectations for these ships and hopes we can fulfill them."

Lunamaria walked up to them. "Hey, I'm going into town, and I was wondering if any of you want to come with."

Athrun shrugged. "You could go with Shinn if you want."

Lunamaria fumed.

"I'm going back to the ship," Athrun said.

"I'm sure you're well rested after your reunion with Lacus," Lunamaria said, storming off.

Athrun took off after her, pulling her aside.

"You slap women, too?" She asked.

"You misunderstood the situation, and you attitude isn't helping the situation," Athrun said quietly."

"I think I've got it pretty well," she replied, walking past him. Athrun sighed in frustration.

* * *

Shinn stopped by a seaside cliff and got out of the car. He looked out at the sea, noticing the reflection of the light made it look like it was sparkling. He saw a young blonde haired girl dancing near the edge. He was shocked when she fell. He threw his jacket off as he ran forward leaping off the cliff.

He nearly lost consciousness when he hit the water, but forced himself to swim. He grabbed the young woman by the arm and swam up as fast as he could. As soon as she could breather, Stellar struggled, trying to get away from him.

"I'm trying to help here!" Shinn yelled, pulling her towards the shore. "Did you want to die, doing that?!"

Stella froze as he pulled her out of the water. "I don't want to die," she said quietly.

Shinn put his arms around her. "I'll protect you."

As Stellar calmed down, Shinn stood up and looked around, noticing a cave. After getting her there, he built a small fire from some branches and laid his shirt near it to dry it. He looked at Stellar. "Where are you from?"

"I don't know," Stellar whispered.

Shinn nodded. "Who do you spend your time with?"

Stellar smiled. "Neo, Sting, and Auel. Are you going to protect me?"

Shinn nodded.

Later that night, Shinn woke up to the sound of a engine. He looked out, seeing Athrun and James getting out of a small boat.

"How could you have an emergency on your day off?" Athrun asked him.

James looked in the cave and whistled. "Oh, he's got an emergency all right."

He motioned for Athrun to come see for himself. When he saw Stellar, he looked at Shinn. "You have some explaining to do."

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Done. And incredibly late. I've been busy and lost track of time. Sorry.


	21. Author's Note

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Just to let everyone know, I am rewriting Ark's Flight. Due to the many inconsistencies within it, I am unbale to finish the original plan for Legacy of the Blaze. Therefore, it will be rewritten, and hopefully Alex and Zero, as well as the other OCs and events that were seen in Ark's Flight will be better characterized and the story in general will have better flow. Thank you all for your reviews, and support. I will be rereading the reviews, as well, to help fix the errors I missed the first time. Thanks again. Hellshadow


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